Yason as 'high priest' sits at his ritual table.
'Disaster But Disco' happened without major disaster on Friday at AIT room. Yason and his two performers animated his installation set up with a series of actions and short gestures which included a fictional news cast about visionaries appearing in Daikanyama and Yason tattooing his two cohorts with fake sticker tattoos. The image above shows Yason applying tattoos under a rotating cheap disco light that was positioned in the centre of the space. Part 2 of my interview with Yason about this performance-installation is below:
Can you explain a little about the performance element of tonight? What the two half naked tattooed men are doing and your role in it?
The performance tonight is quite important, at least to me personally, as I haven`t presented my body 'live' for quite some time. Usually what I show are traces of my performance via photography, video and sculpture, or if done 'live' employ other people/bodies instead.
The two guys in the performance resemble sculptures; they are not actors. It continues my interest in masculine stupor and awkward figurines, as well as sleepwalking as an in-between state between reality and the subconscious, stillness and action. Visually, the black strip of electric tape on their eyes and headphones on their ears are very similar to the 'straight' guys you see appearing on amateur Japanese porn. I find this fascinating - the Japanese notion of outer and inner realities (I forgot what they're called) - blocking out 'disasters' and other disturbances to norm, and living in a sort of fantasy 'disco' land. I think its also dangerous, because there is little acknowledgement or tolerance of certain deviations and ideas.
The black strip on the eye-line also remind me of visionaries in the Philippines, religious devotees who claim to have seen God, Jesus or the Virgin Mary. In both cases (porn and religion), the focus is on the eyes - the epicenter of ecstasy and knowledge. But also in both cases, these porn actors and religious visionaries are amateurs and charlatans. The realities and apparitions they claim to see are fake, blocked by their own pathology.
My participation in the performance will move between various elements culled from different sources/ constellations, marked by my stenciling of tattoos on the two males bodies as well as small actions inspired by samurai porn, death metal disco, folk science and news-casting.
Why is everything black! Its the colour of many things - death and mourning, but also a sense of high fashion and minimalism. I noticed you have taped objects like umbrellas up in black tape and sprayed things black. Its like you are pushing everything into a state of deep space?
Yes.. deep space.. Not just constellations in outer space but in sunny islands such as the Philippines. I've become interested in macho minimalism, as well as the notion of a 'tropical gothic' - something I want to further develop formally. To explore the dark side of the "dancing sun" so to speak, and sunny, supposedly "happy" people and forms.
Another deep space that comes to mind is the beach. Its a place for frolic and fun, but can also quite be quite menacing. I like the idea of how black waves devour/embrace all the colourful creatures and objects in its path. And it continues, the destruction and creation of patterns. There's a certain horror to it, but also melancholy. Deep within the void/the disaster is a tropical island of colors and flavours, clashing but engaging nevertheless. Its resurrection and quite hopeful.
Is this installation a prelude to your work for the Singapore Biennale in September?
Yes. Yes!
Finally, how has Tokyo been to live in? What have you found interesting, strange, wonderful?
Many things - people, places, music, the culture and of course the city. I like getting lost, and Tokyo is the perfect place to do that, discovering new unintended paths in the process. I feel normal here too, which is probably good for me these days. I wish I had more time though, language skills, resources and
sleep. Hopefully next year when I come back I can get to relax more, see more and say more than "arigatoh" and "gomen nasai."
Thanks Yason
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