P.A.F 07.09

This project will end when I will manage to climb on the trees like a boy.

This project will end when I will dance  zeibekiko as  my grandfather did in my imagination.

This project will end when I will have the voice that will be used to scare the ghost of the Other.

This project will end when I will love the worst elements of my Father.

This project will end when the puzzle of Me will be completed.

This project will end when the Me won’t include anymore only me(s)

This project will end when You will have taken something from Me.

This project has already started long time ago and will take much more time .

 

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http://athinklab.com/2013/04/20/the-psychology-of-selfies-narcissism-or-self-exploration/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-Made_Men

https://www.msu.edu/~ozimekj/courses/thr212/Project_Example_Self_Portrait.pdf

http://blog.oup.com/2010/06/kahlo_portrait/

http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/428512/august-26-2013/5-x-five—summer-roundup–anthony-weiner

http://heinonline.org/HOL/Page?handle=hein.journals/bufwlj15&collection=journals

Self Made Man Review by Stryker_12

 

 Kim Dingle

 

 Click picture to enter!

Robert Arneson

 

  Cindy Sherman

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P.A.F 05.09

Thursday 5 /9 2013 PAF

Back to the studio.

Some old boots

A camera

A  broken tripod

My PC

A brush

Mirrors.

The Manichean

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I AM STILL SOMEWHERE IN THE IN BETWEEN 

How is to watch and observe your self through a mirror? I chosen to use the broken in two mirror. My reflection, my image broken in two pieces. The same face but two portions. I was thinking of my grandfather  spending long time in front of the mirror brushing and fixing his hair. What exactly was I? a girl?a boyish girl? a girly boy? without a (fake) mustache or beard, wig and clothes to define a male figure (recognizable in general terms). How can you “feel” as a boy without trying to look like aesthetically first? I remember Christine saying when she went in that gay club with friends: I was feeling like a Man. I didn’t have into my mind to dress or behave physically as if I was a man. I was feeling a Man.


unedited video

By Watching again the video I can see that (my) man is associated with> inner anger expressed through the gaze, stiffness, inflexible face, smaller eyes,  rectangle jaw, thick eyebrows. I noticed that also in the workshop with Diane Torr, Man for a day, the male persona emerged slowly was carried with an “angry” energy. An inner anger that is accumulated becomes more visible when the “male” face comes in the surface.

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I am in a point where I feel to have lost my way to get satisfaction when I rehearse, experiment things, playing with video. Why has to be interesting for someone to watch and spend time for something that is about me? Yes, it’s great to discover things but why do I have to share it with the others?In which way can I do it? How can get rid of the judgment but not of the critical way to analyse things in order to define and solve my “problems”?Do I need to get rid of the tools or to change the way I am using them? This kind of questions are running through my head.

Feedback from PAVLOS (the discussion was long and very much interesting and inspiring. Still not possible to remember the exact words but for sure I have registered the spirit of the discussion)

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  • CRITERIA> crisis. They have to be traced to the final product that it will make it different from any other possible final product.
  • TIME>long process. Research. Yes, it is a painful process and needs time.
  • SATISFACTION>where is it coming from? Narcissism, Need? 
  • Being ALONE>3 heads at 1. When u are alone you don’t have the possibility to rely on someone else, to share or give the responsibility of choices or actions, to have another point of you(external). But still u have to continue.
  • Feedback> to feed someone back> giving food 
  • Master> being master of myself , of my work, knowing where I stand and why.
  • Tools> which is the way I use them? which elements make it to work? why doesn’t work?
  • What do I have discovered that is different or important for me and in a certain extent for the others? How do I deliver this?
  • ITHAKI> when u start this journey towards Ithaki wish and desire to be a long journey. And wish never to arrive there. When u arrive the dream becomes nightmare: you realize that your wife was fucked from half island, your son wants to kill you, and your dog is dead.But keep on travelling.
  • Quality vs Quantity.
  • Always you end up to the question> What art is and why are you doing it?
  • SELECTION> there is a point where u have to through away what is not anymore necessary.
  • Methodology> what you are called to do is to find your own methodology of working.
  • You try to IMAGINE the new thing without have finished the work/the research.
  • From generic to specific or the opposite. A mater of decision.
  • “I STAY HERE IN MY PLACE”.
  • There are other things that you haven’t tried them and from which you can get the elements u need for your development.

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Visual byproduct

mir1moment of ” feeling like a man”

mir4 Moment of being as I am in the studio

vlcsnap-2013-09-05-16h56m51s47 Trying being Fenia

mod The missing element

 

Video>

Mirroring from Foteini K on Vimeo.

Scanning from Foteini K on Vimeo.

P.A.F 04.09

Lets start with some inspiration today

Inspiration

Lili Handel by Ivo Dimcev

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ad8YN0_zM8&list=TLsksTEVPxwLs

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Being John Malcovitch

-WELL MAXINE, I Am not sure exacTly …

PErhaPS ThE IDEA BEcoming soMEone Else for a WHIle.

Being inside anOTHER SKin.

THINKing differently

MOVing differently

 

FEELing diferently.

…about the nature of self…the existence of the soul… weather I am me

…It’s like he has a vagina.is vaginal..he is pennis and vagina…akind of Malcovitch feminine site

so strong. I want that voice..

Someone was talking through my mouth….through me..

..the truth is for suckers..

..am I a kind of a monster?…No honey…you are  a very confused man.

..It’s all about making friend with Malcovitch body rather than thinking of  he is an enemy that has to be pounded into submission

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What do I get from these video?

  • Revelation of the truth self. this has to be happen in the presence of the Others.
  • Looking yourself from a hole. How do change your lenses?
  • The horror of finding and seeing all the aspects of yourself.
  • What u demonstrate is the hybrid of yourself. Something that belongs somewhere between reality and fantasy.
  • Awareness of the place you are or Control of yourself and your actions? Both can be the different aspects of the same game.

 

 

 

 

 

P.A.F. 03.09

 Tuesday 03.09.2013 PAF

My mother answers in my questions. I read them and I feel so touched. Tears.

A man from whom I have 2 or 3 vague memories. A man with whom I am connected because of our history written in the same book..A question of genes, what we call “the same blood”? His story passes infiltrated to my story. I know him but I don’t know him. What do I keep from him in this research and how do I “translate” psycho physically these elements/info?

Τα περισσοτερα, οπως καταλαβαίνεις τα ξέρει ο θείος σου…. που τον εζησε απο κοντα. Θα σου πω ομως κι εγω αυτα που ξερω,,,, Γεννηθηκε το 1924 και επειδη ηταν ο μικροτερος στην οικογενεια ειχε και τα περισσοτερα προνομια…. ηταν ο χαιδεμενος! Πηγε στο γυμνασιο, τοτε που πολυ λιγα παιδια πηγαιναν, ηταν εξυπνος, κοινωνικος, ζεστος και γελαστος, με παρα πολλους φιλους, κατι σαν εσενα…….! Ηταν παντα μεσα σ’ολα τα θέματα, σ’ολες τις συζητησεις…… Ισχυρογνωμων σε πολλα, δεν του αρεσε να λεει το ιδιο πραγμα δυο φορες….. επρεπε να τον καταλαβεις με τη μια. Ακουγε πολλη μουσικη και διαβαζε παρα πολυ. Οτι βιβλιο του επεφτε στα χερια: απο κομικς μεχρι απαγορευμενα πολιτικα βιβλια. Του αρεσε πολυ η καλοπεραση. Γλεντια, χοροι, πανηγυρια και οτι αλλο υπηρχε τοτε, σ’ολα μεσα. Δεν θυμαμαι καλα, αλλα μαλλον τραγουδουσε, καλα εννοω, απ’οτι ελεγαν. Αλλα χορευε σιγουρα, και μαλιστα ζειμπεκικο!! Επινε στα συνηθισμενα πλαισια οταν εβγαινε εξω, αλλα καπνιζε αρκετα, αν και το σταματησε οταν γυρω στα 55 του χρονια. Οσο για το ντυσιμο, και γενικως την περιποιηση, ηταν ο απολυτος ορισμός της “κοκετας” (πως ειναι αληθεια στο αρσενικο;;; κοκετος; χαχα) Ηταν περηφανος και δεν δισταζε δημοσια να πει την αποψη του ωμα, εστω και αν ηξερε πως αυτο μπορει να ειχε ασχημες επιπτωσεις, (οπως και ειχε πολιτικα, με αποτελεσμα να φτασει ενα βημα πριν την εξορια στην χουντα….) Θυμωνε και βλασφημουσε, αλλα του περνουσε γρηγορα. Σε νεαρη ηλικια και πριν παντρευτει επαθε σπονδυλο-αρθριτιδα, που του δημιουργησε την κυρτωση στην πλατη και δυσκαμψια στον αυχενα, αυτο τον δυσκολευε στην κινηση του κεφαλιου του, του αυχενα….. Η δουλεια του ηταν αγροτης, και παραλληλα για πολλα χρονια ειχε το κρεοπωλειο στο χωριο. Αγαπημενο φαγητο αμφιβαλλω αν ειχε ποτε, ετρωγε πολυ λιγο, και δεν ηταν το πρωτο του μελημα…. Οταν μεγαλωσα, διαπιστωσα οτι ηταν πολλοι οι ανθρωποι που τον θαυμαζαν, δεν ξερω ακριβως το γιατι, αλλα μου εδειχναν οτι ηταν περηφανοι που ειχαν υπαρξει φιλοι του. Ακομα και τωρα υπαρχουν ατομα που μου το λενε…… και ενας απο αυτους θα χαιροταν να σου μιλησει (ο φιλος του ο Φερλες) Παρενθεση: Απο μικρη μου ελεγαν: <Νιόνιο, αγύριστο κεφαλι> Γιατι αληθεια;;;;;

Βρισκεις να του μοιαζεις καπου;;;;

family foto

*I will try to translate it.

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Thoughts stimulating after Pavlos comment regarding psychoanalysis and choreography.

So far as I perceive Psychoanalysis is a way/method of understanding yourself includes also an understanding of what you are doing. I see choreography as something that you build up slowly, a kind of architectural building made with the traces of your deeper understanding regarding yourself and the topic that concerns you at the present moment.
But the relationship between choreography and psychoanalysis is more complex, I think.
Sometimes we use to analyse things for the shake of doing it. Sometimes we choreograph just for the shake to do it. When we skip this kind of intention> Doing for the shake of Doing, we can deal with psychoanalysis and choreography as processes towards the discovery of “truth”. Here comes in my mind the concept of “truths” according Badiou…as something that is not static and not appears in the context of knowledge. Something that changes constantly, moments of a fluid state. ( In this point I would like to ask if we can have a lecture regarding Badiou concepts of event and truth in relation to the moment of performance).

Regarding the main difficulty and where the hard work is, I feel and believe that concerns the Honesty. In order to have an efficient function any kind of analysis I believe that the element of Honesty is relevant, is the key. It’s these one moment of honesty that is difficult to be externalized and shared in a presentation or performance. Therefore, I start believing that the best choreography is the one that never will be re-staged/re-presented, re-performed.Like the dance. The nest dance is the one that you haven’t danced yet. But this doesn’t mean that there is no worth in all these attempts to bring back that moment of honesty. What u can do is to find the way to bring the essence of that moment. This is the hard work.

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FEEDBACK-Tutorial

The image that could reflect the point and the state in which I am after almost 9 days of research is>

One of the rooms of this big old renovated monastery, probably the cave, with all the material that I have collected up to now>video , foto, thoughts ….all these pieces and outcomes that maybe worth or not..Like in the bins, always u can find a treasure..or not.

And me in another room. Sitting in the middle of the space in a chair, crossed dressed as a man but without fake beard…the whole surface of the floor is covered by photos..3 different photo in copies> of my grandfather, my brother and of my father..but without their faces.

Actually I was thinking the way that I could “present” on Sunday (day of presentation, final feedback and evaluation) before leaving from PAF. So I discussed this with Pavlos

Pavlos regarding the process

  • WAIT….WAIT ACTIVELY.  I think that very often my spontaneity, imagination, intuition and the state of Epifania (term in the way that it was  explained by Pavlos some days ago and I found very inspiring.* in which I find myself to be in certain moments > “I got IT”,  makes me to a little  bit rush. I have a certain conclusion in my mind and I direct the things in that direction but without to have finished my research. Although I think its nice to have the imagination active I realize that I have to be patience. I have still at least 3 days of work 
  • Which is the quintessence of your research? Your thesis? You need to find and collect all these elements that will compose at the end the core of your research, a thesis that it will be the combination of  the basic principles and concepts emerged from your research. 
  • LANGUAGE> the  language you will use in order to deliver your thesis has to be coherent and rooted to the concept. 
  • CONTENT AND LANGUAGE WILL EXPRESS THE CONCEPT.
  • What are you trying to convince me about with your presentation as audience?I perceive the word convince as being sure about what are you doing. 
  • ANTEVORTA and CRITERIA where the work is based. They have not been defined in a functional and essential way. I think that making your own manifesto is difficult.  I think the main difficulty was that I hadn’t complete and  deep understanding of certain concepts regarding the books (Zizek, Agamben, Badiou) which we had to read and base our Manifesto/Antevorta. After our discussion I understood how it works and how can function as a way/methodology for making more structured work. I need to digest certain concepts. Of course I believe that you can also understand when you try to apply them in your practice. When you don’t have a deep understanding of a concept u can probably  fall in representation, association or a failure. But I find it still a good way to learn. Although it would be helpful a lecture for the clarification of certain concepts. 
  • Find this kind of concepts that you think are related to your own project and we can have an one to one lecture session. Otherwise, if I speak generally you risk to follow new stimuli like the last time when the evening before we had a lecture about the relationship between audience and performance and you  focused your presentation of the day after on that topic.
  • Watch the film Being John Malkovich.

Regarding the project

  • Figure of Father. Where is it? Is missing his image. Still I think I want to work in the figures of the grandfather (past)and brother(present) before going to the father figure. But anyway I think indirectly there are coming out things in relation to this figure.
  • Concept on Gift( Zizek) that u could check.

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Yesterday I had a very interesting discussion with an other resident here in PAF, Christine about gender roles, constructed identity, the bipolar relation female-male. She told me about her experience as crossed dressed  FTM (female to male). She spoke about the importance of “feeling” male as a more convincing way than the outfit.

I go back to the question that Jan made me in the first encounter>

WHAT DOES MEAN TO FEEL GIRL? WHAT DOES MEAN FOR YOU TO FEEL A BOY?

Anyway…very nice discussion.

And today she sent me an article by a

DONNA HARAWAY, “A CYBORG MANIFESTO
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND SOCIALIST-FEMINISM IN THE LATE TWENTIETH CENTURY,” IN SIMIANS, CYBORGS AND WOMEN: THE REINVENTION OF NATURE (NEW YORK; ROUTLEDGE, 1991), PP.149-181.

http://www.egs.edu/faculty/donna-haraway/articles/donna-haraway-a-cyborg-manifesto/

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P.A.F 02.08

Monday 02.09.2013 P.A.F

After doing a lot  it came the moment to do  and occupy myself with one thing.

To find out who is HE. Who I want him to be. 

It’s obvious. There is no mean to hide from that and to be impatient.

I choose HIM.

From a distance at the beginning.

I Know that He has something to do with these figures>

GRANDFATHER

BROTHER

Mr N.

Mr S.

Maybe, He should be more related with the figure of Father. Where the Father is? Who the Father is?

………….

Is it choreography a kind of Psychoanalysis as Pavlos uses to say?

For some reason I was avoiding to use my time here in PAF as a place of honest deep self analysis and therapy. “Here is work and an effort to find out what art means for me or how to learn more about work. It´s not a place for therapy.”…what a terrible misconception…

It is really about Me, dear Fenia.

I haven´t decide to be an employee (with all my respect to employees and the work their are doing. I have decided to expose myself believing that this can arrive as a meaning to others.  Otherwise I would have keep to do it in my living room. But first of all I do it for me, to find recognition, love, acceptance, heal, motivation to deal with my life decisions, to built up a completely autonomous person, free from restrictions and other´s desires and expectations.

Yesterday I realized how much little I do it for me. How much more I  have in my minds the others…the desires of  the others, the opinion that the others could have about me…In that way I follow to the trap of losing my essence, the essence of others role and function. The others represents the “Father”; the one that controls and influence who u are. His power is bigger than u think. Not all the “others”. The ones  I place them (consciously or unconsciously) as authorities in front of me and I tend to take a submissive attitude

others= > Father= > the big Other

MALE. MALE energy. MEN.

In order to confront with them I need my  “HE”.

This alter ego, this male persona maybe is the key.

 

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I start for the recent Past. I start from the Grandfather.

grandf

Grandfather=> Past

Important note: Today from 8 o clock and for 24 hours I have signed a contract to be with Vagia (not in more than 2 metres distance while we are connected for whole period with a thick thread. She works on her project and I have to to concentrate to my own work.#

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Tasks:

Write about the Grandfather.

-who is he in my mind?

– How I imagine him?

– What do I like about him?What I don´t?

Ask my mother to speak about him. Pavlos probably would have said that I will have more information about the other person than for him.

There is a thread to connect us. 

Anyway my idea of him is influenced by the narration of my mother because he died when I was child.

I want as much info about him.

Research movement.

-WALK.

-Way to brush the hair.

Emotion research

-Submission

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20:30

1st phase>description. The idea I have for him and the first associations.

Grandfather> My idea of him is that of a silent, introvert and kind man. Not able to hurt somebody. Melancholic eyes. He dance the best zeibekiko. He has a heavy and slow way to walk without moving too much his hand and with a tension to the left shoulder. Attractive and mysterious. Also:

  • blue eyes. I always wanted to have blue  or green eyes.
  • perfect hair. He used to brush his hair with a black comb in front of a mirror for hours. Each hair had to be in the right position. 
  • DSC05318DSC05317
  • Curved shoulders. Introversion, maybe because of  health problems.
  • Face with lines. Lines>personal association : strong personality, direct. I f I was a man I would like to have marked lines in my face. 
  • Silent type. Introvert. Spoiled. Used to be taken care by women: sister and wife.
  • Very thin and elegant presence.
  • Difficult with the food.

2nd phase>short  questionnaire for my mother about him>

  • When did he born?
  • Was he smiling often?
  • Was he talking too much?
  • Did he used to drink?
  • Did he like to sing or/and dance?
  • What kind of health problem he had?
  • What he was doing when he was angry?
  • How would you describe his voice?
  • What was that he hated?
  • What was that he loved most?
  • Can you describe some stories with him?
  • Do I have something that remind him?
  • Any other comment you want.

The story of the “Big Sister”  stayed all day long into my head. The real story and the way that I imagine it are fused.

  • The story with the hyper-protective sister> He is a man with no strong  will. Submissive to this powerful/strong woman, who controls him, suggests him what to do, takes care of him, influences him, follows him..Does he knows his own desires? How he defends them against her will.It was very interesting today, being attached (still I am) with Vagia. This thread  doesn’t allow me to take distance from her. The most of the times I follow her decisions and desires. Even when I am doing my work and she doesn’t bother me it’s still there. And I know that she will be for 24 hours. we were walking and she was behind me. In a certain moment I felt alone but at the same time her presence was so close to me. I wanted to be alone. I couldn’t.  But I resist. I don’t feel so much pressure. I accept that she exists but I am looking forward when I will be free from this thread.

I start not having a “face”.

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Another experiment was to find different ways to walk. The task is to try for the next days to embody a new way to walk.

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I understand psychoanalysis as a process of cutting in pieces the “psyche” with a sharp knife in order to understand the way that it functions or not. Making choreography request a kind of analysis that will help to understand the way that I create something, how it functions or not, what works and what does’t work. Of course the too much analysis brings paralysis and it’s necessary to distinguish the moment that something needs to be analysed and the moment that has to be done. Doing and thinking are two process that has to walk hand to hand and this is actually the hard work. As in my case I realize that I tend more to think and analyse that sometimes rather than going deeper I just making circles around one thing. Although today in a certain moment of auto-analysis came out that…

I am doing what I am doing first of all in order to feel important.

My interest to work in my male persona or alter ego comes from a desire to find and combine the elements and characteristics of a persona that will claim its importance in different ways (speaking, dancing, being).

A process of slow transformation where I aim to discover more about Ego-complexity (Egomplexity?)  rather than to  solve any kind of problem aroused from the bipolar relationship of male and female within the person.

What Do I need solutions or ways to deal with myself , the others and the big other?

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Today, under the restriction to be all the time with Vagia who was trying to distract me,  I tried to apply the triad

OBSERVE, ANALYSE, TRYING IN YOUR BODY.

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