Lukasik-Foss examines line between performance and visual art
Mike Dirisio
Issue date: 11/3/09 Section: Arts & Entertainment
In gaining this new insight, he sought out to make works that house performers, while redefining the process and interaction of the performance itself. He refers to these works as his "performance structures" and has had numerous performers, including himself, play from within the structures. Those at Rodman Hall have small round platforms, large enough for a single standing performer, with big shield-like barriers arising in front of the performance area.
He has designed these to comment on a paradox which he has noticed to exist in many performers.
"I'm a classic performer in-so-far as I love being on stage, but I'm just terrified of people 90 per cent of the time. That seems to be really common for performers, that they kind of have this neuroses about themselves, how they fit in the world, and yet they have this need to step up on stages and declare who they are," said Lukasik-Foss.
These works are part of a larger series of performance structures, with other works shaped as igloos, which entirely restrict the performer from seeing the audience. This drastically changes the performance process, in that there becomes a massive divide between viewer and performer. The viewers have no way of knowing if there is actually a performer in the structure, or simply a recording, and the performer has no way of knowing if he has an audience, let alone if the audience is reacting positively to the music. He wanted to investigate how each party would respond to this alteration.
"Just by the fact there's a barrier there, does the audience work that much harder to try and make that connection with the performer, and does the performer work that much harder to kind of reach out to the audience," said Lukasik-Foss.
This produced fascinating results, especially from the perspective of the performer. Naturally, many performers reacted differently, and the difference between their responses is quite interesting.
"The performers we invited to go through that structure - some of them had panic attacks, some of them thought it was the greatest thing because suddenly they didn't have anybody watching them and they could be kind of free to do what they wanted to do," said Lukasik-Foss. "Some of the performers saw it completely as this sort of leap of faith. It became like a test of their own declaration to be an artist or a musician."
He has designed these to comment on a paradox which he has noticed to exist in many performers.
"I'm a classic performer in-so-far as I love being on stage, but I'm just terrified of people 90 per cent of the time. That seems to be really common for performers, that they kind of have this neuroses about themselves, how they fit in the world, and yet they have this need to step up on stages and declare who they are," said Lukasik-Foss.
These works are part of a larger series of performance structures, with other works shaped as igloos, which entirely restrict the performer from seeing the audience. This drastically changes the performance process, in that there becomes a massive divide between viewer and performer. The viewers have no way of knowing if there is actually a performer in the structure, or simply a recording, and the performer has no way of knowing if he has an audience, let alone if the audience is reacting positively to the music. He wanted to investigate how each party would respond to this alteration.
"Just by the fact there's a barrier there, does the audience work that much harder to try and make that connection with the performer, and does the performer work that much harder to kind of reach out to the audience," said Lukasik-Foss.
This produced fascinating results, especially from the perspective of the performer. Naturally, many performers reacted differently, and the difference between their responses is quite interesting.
"The performers we invited to go through that structure - some of them had panic attacks, some of them thought it was the greatest thing because suddenly they didn't have anybody watching them and they could be kind of free to do what they wanted to do," said Lukasik-Foss. "Some of the performers saw it completely as this sort of leap of faith. It became like a test of their own declaration to be an artist or a musician."
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