Installation & Performance art
4 beds, 1000 handmade paper flowers, 3kgs of lavender, 6min video performance
CAMAC – Centre d’Art Marnay Sur Sein
France
2004
Meera George
A theatrical space with suspended beds, floor strewn with a thousand flowers, air filled with the intoxicating fragrance of lavender, is all centered around the central video performance of ‘Ophelia’. The Installation artwork is thrown open to various interpretations- of sleep and dreams, of Freudian theories, love making, fantasies and illusions, escapism, slumber and eternity. The work appears morbid, yet the morbidity is contrasted by the seemingly serious but satirical video of ‘Ophelia’. The contemporary art performance was inspired by the painting of Ophelia by John Everett Millais. The Shakespearean character ends up in a state of madness that ultimately leads to her drowning in the river. A woman is seen walking through different spaces in search of her resting place. She belongs to this world, surrounded by the mundane. Noise and silence fill her moments. Her strides are confident and purposeful, she isn’t weak. Just tired perhaps. What about her life does she wish to put to rest, even for a moment? And is it momentary rest that she is seeking or eternal peace? The sweet lullaby that sets the tone for the piece later turns into a haunting juxtaposition of words, cajoling her, in her quest for that state of union with herself.
The installation artwork and contemporary performance art video was created in residence at CAMAC, France. Grant and art residency funded by the Unesco Aschberg bursary and French Embassy, India.
