All of my performance work is performed for the camera and presented in still photo or video format, existing as documentation. The premise of the video “Leda and the Swan,” a four-screen 2k video projection, is straightforward. I, the artist, and a male swan are put into a room together to see what happens. The inspiration for the work is Greek mythology; the seduction (or rape) of Leda by Zeus, who has taken on the form of a swan in order to deceive and prey upon Leda, who is married and not available to him. This scene is played out in mosaics discovered in Pompei, in Greek and Roman statuary, in European painting, and in twentieth century photography. The video is a continuation of my exploration of classical themes and mythology, specifically in relation to questions of embodiment. Embodiment is immanent to the story in that Zeus has chosen to change form in order to have sex with Leda, but also plays out watching the video, in which time is given to contemplate and compare the human form and animal form.

The video is also part of a contemporary lineage, starting with Joseph Beuys’ famous performance in which he puts himself into a room with a coyote (or predator). My video stands as a counterpoint in that the swan or predator does not act out a seduction or aggression, but is entirely self-absorbed, narcissistically preening itself and ignoring my presence. The lineage for the video also includes Mircea Cantor’s 2005 work “Deeparture,” in which he placed a deer into a gallery space with a wolf. In all three videos there is the presumption of a predator and prey relationship, each played out with different outcomes, but none where violence ensues. My work puts forward a female (and aging body) for contemplation, but also creates an ambiguous frame in which it is less clear which actor is meant as the predator and which as the prey. The work also intersects the current dialogue about the relationship of humans and animals and the critique of still-prevalent notions of male mastery.