Structures of Care (Scaffold for Lauryn), 2020
Structures of Care (Scaffold for Alex), 2020
Structures of Care (Scaffold for Abi), 2020
Structures of Care (Scaffold for Clay), 2020
Structures of Care (Scaffold for Patty), 2020
Structures of Care (Scaffold for Saar), 2020
[Six videos designed to be played simultaneously and on a loop. Audio of crackling flames, crunching of leaves and a heavily distorted whispering voice. On each screen is a scaffold structure made of matchsticks, each placed on a dirt floor covered with leaves in front of a cement and brick wall. The structures are uneven, fragile and precarious looking, forming grids and columns, bridges and towers, all of which look close to collapse. Each structure is on fire. Some burn quickly in a blaze that turns the light wood to black; smoke rises from these structures in an angry fog. Some burn slowly, their flames buffeted by the wind. As each structure burns it topples over and falls to the ground. Once floored the structures continue to burn, weakly, fighting to stay ablaze with no protection and a limited fuel supply. As each structure burns, a text comes and goes on the screen; a prayer and a dedication to a named person, spoken as the scaffold turns to ash.]
Filmed on Super 8, commissioned by Rupert, Lithuania and shown at the Artists’ Association Gallery, as part of the exhibition ‘Other Rooms’, co-curated by Leah Clements, Kotryna Markevičiūtė & Yates Norton. Supported by the Universität der Künste Berlin Graduiertenschule and the Berlin Centre for Advanced Studies in Arts and Sciences. Supported by the Unlimited Micro Award.
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This series, “Structures of Care” (scaffolds #1-6) speaks to precarity, devotion and care in a time of isolation and uncertainty. Sick and disabled bodies, already living under the strains of late stage capitalism and an inability to adhere to expectations of labour, productivity and worth, are once again shown to be dispensable in the eyes of normative culture during a global pandemic. How can we care for each other in these times? How can we foster much-needed tenderness and meaningful support within our communities? These caring structures that we make, although fragile and built on flimsy foundations without structural support, are nonetheless vital. Our care is whispered over the wind, as we fall and flail, as we collect each other from the ground, as we send our prayers into the night, with only each other to hear them.