“Paraphernalia” centers around methodically transforming a single piece of text into multiple time-based mediums. By breaking down, dissecting and then piecing back together, the artist is experimenting with how far source material can be manipulated before it’s completely destroyed.

The act of mediating text into bodily movement systematically removes information essential to its understanding. The viewer knows the work is derived from written language, but has no other way of accessing the information it once stored.

It is abstracted completely beyond recognition, completely transformed into hollow actions. The original intention of the text holds no relevance in this context. It has simply become a list of dance instructions only relevant to the performer. Once the artist completes the instructions, their final action is to scrunch up copy of the edited source material and toss it out like garbage.

To enhance the absurdity of presenting a “written” piece the viewer cannot read, many movements are dependant on atmosphere, viewer and architectural features of the space. This creates a performance that is unique each time it is presented, anchored to each gallery it is shown in and the people who witnessed it.

I really wanted to see what happens when you take written text off a page and manipulate it through different mediums. The results range from the live performance of movements to sound, animation and video performance. The final product of these experiments consists of the live performance in a gallery, using video, sound, and props as a backdrop.

I wanted to try and present the “paraphernalia” of making art. I am aiming to challenge the long-standing convention of an artist’s process being hidden in rehearsals or studios. In this performance I attempt to move the process and rehearsals into the public eye. My hope is that this will lead people to reflect on questions of what art is and what makes up an artist.