Wednesday, September 13, 2017

The Art of Being Bombarded by Watermelons

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/13/arts/design/kawita-vatanajyankur-artist.html?hpw&rref=arts&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=well-region&region=bottom-well&WT.nav=bottom-well





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In her 2015 video, “The Scale 2,” above, the artist Kawita Vatanajyankur hangs suspended from ropes, eyes closed and arms outstretched, supporting two wide, flat baskets. A neon green background blazes out at the viewer, and dried rice begins to fall into the baskets. The trickle becomes a torrent; grains ricochet off her face as her arms sway under the load.
The downpour intensifies for two increasingly uncomfortable minutes before fading out. Throughout, her expression remains unchanged.
“It’s quite violent,” she said. “You see the strains, the injuries, and all of that.”
Ms. Vatanajyankur, 30, who lives and works in Bangkok, has been creating these alluring, acerbic videos since 2012, turning her body into a variety of simple tools and machines. In “The Dustpan,” from 2014, her body is a broom and her hair, the bristles. In 2012’s “Wet Rag,” we watch from above as another woman uses the artist to scrub a floor.
Her performances evoke the kind of physical labor that has traditionally fallen to women in Thailand, linking their subjugation with backbreaking work. This is perhaps most clear in “The Scale,” from 2015, below.
We watch as she holds a yoga-like pose on her neck and shoulders, her feet aloft and supporting a plastic basket. Chunks of watermelon — 60 pounds’ worth — rain down, crashing and splashing on her, but Ms. Vatanajyankur is unfazed. The performance is startling, amusing and appalling all at once.
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The vivid colors, Ms. Vatanajyankur said in a recent interview, are inspired by the striking designs that make consumer products stand out on a supermarket shelf. “You see those beautiful packages,” she said, and you don’t think for a moment about the labor that’s behind them.
She has had solo exhibitions in Thailand, Australia and Japan, and is included this month in “Stamina,” a two-person exhibition (with the artist Liza Buzytsky) curated by Alexandra Fanning at Secret Dungeon, a Bushwick project space.
Creating these works takes time. Ms. Vatanajyankur spends anywhere from two weeks to two months working out the details and choreographing each performance. For the watermelon piece, she said, “I had to practice a lot.”
During the performance, though, she aims to lose her sense of self and “really become a part of the working tools or machines.” Getting to that point requires a great deal of meditation, she said.
Photo
A still image from Ms. Vatanajyankur’s “The Dustpan” (2014). CreditCourtesy of the artist
Ms. Vatanajyankur’s work has inspired very different reactions. In Thailand, the response has often focused on gender equality, “female strength and endurance,” she said.
But in Japan, she said, “it was a completely different story.”
Viewers there sought her out, sharing feelings of inadequacy in their jobs, a sense of shame in being unable to meet expectations of perfection. “It was like a confession, almost,” she said. “Two people came to me and cried.”
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Other videos, like “The Carrying Pole,” above, suggest torments worthy of Dante or ancient mythology. And some audiences have asked whether she had a political aim, or if she meant to criticize abusive interrogation tactics like waterboarding in these endurance works.
That was not her intention, Ms. Vatanajyankur said. But “these layers are also quite interesting to me.”
Some works escalate those kinds of bodily violations. In a 2013 work, “Poured,” she appears serene as an improbable amount of water gushes from a funnel into her mouth. For a new work, “Big Fish,” she hangs suspended from an oversized hook.
Photo
A still from “Poured” (2013). CreditCourtesy of the artist
These tableaux may present an extremist vision of labor and its depredations upon the body, but Ms. Vatanajyankur offers another interpretation: “It’s almost impossible to transform yourself into a machine or a working tool, because we are human and we have our own limits.”
But, she added, “Our bodies and our minds have an amazing ability to adjust.”
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How Smart a Traveler Are You?




A view of Lake Como from Palazzo del Vice Re, which offers a package for two in October. Palazzo del Vice Re
1 of 8
Planning an early fall trip from the United States to Italy is:
A bad idea, because airfare tends to be higher during the months of September and October.
A good idea, because airfare tends to be lower during the months of September and October.
A good idea, because airfare is about the same all year long, and Italy is beautiful in the autumn.
Passengers form a long queue to check in at Orlando International Airport ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Irma on Saturday. Gregg Newton/Reuters
2 of 8
If the city you’re visiting has a hurricane heading its way, one expert suggests:
Staying put and hunkering down in your hotel till the storm passes.
Arranging for a flight out of the city as soon as possible.
Waiting till the latest possible moment to fly out, as the prices will be the lowest then.
Cool Cousin
3 of 8
Among the smartphone apps that provide travel advice from local residents, which were reviewed in our latest Test Run column,which ones allow you to download area maps for offline use?
Spotted by Locals
Cool Cousin
Like a Local
All of the above
The Pembrokes in London. The Plum Guide
4 of 8
Has London has become a more affordable vacation destination since Brexit?
Yes
No
Lars Leetaru
5 of 8
To get a good night’s sleep at a hotel, Alistair Hughes, the managing director of Savoir Beds, suggests:
Using the mini bar.
Staying loyal to a few hotel brands.
Making special requests with the hotel.
Choice two and three
All of the Above
6 of 8
When setting the mood in your hotel room for a good night’s sleep, Mr. Hughes recommended:
Using ear plugs to block noise.
Using the blackout blinds your room likely has.
Setting the temperature to between 64 and 66 degrees Fahrenheit.
Choice two and three.
All of the above.
Photos framed by Framebridge.
7 of 8
Among the travel photo printing options tested by our Getaway columnist Stephanie Rosenbloom, the most affordable for basic prints was:
Shutterfly
Printage
Amazon Prints
8 of 8
Among the travel photo printing and framing options tested by our Getaway columnist Stephanie Rosenbloom, her top choice was:
Framebridge
Artifact Uprising
Nations Photo Lab
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