“On Display” is a performance art exhibition comprised of a gaggle of individuals who pose in stillness, with their eyes open, or who transfer between poses very slowly, with their eyes closed. The performers move through these poses for hours, courtesy of Heidi Latsky Dance, a diverse dance company featuring many bodies with different forms of disability. The mission started in 2015 as “guerrilla artwork” in Times Square, meant to honor the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
That first iteration went so nicely that Ms. Latsky and her friend Kelly Drummond Cawthon, the artistic director of a Tasmanian ensemble that trains and employs both disabled and nondisabled artists, decided to recreate the performance on a particular date in many places at once. That date December 3rd, is the United Nations’ International Day of Persons With Disabilities, which is celebrated annually.
Since then, the artistic performance has spread from New York and Australia to dozens of other places around the world. This year, due to the special challenges related to Covid-19, the performances are going virtual with a 24-hour Zoom gathering on Thursday, December 3. Performers from more than 30 countries will be grouped by geography into segments lasting up to 2 hours each. Log-on at 12 a.m. Eastern time, and it’s a window to the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery. Join later, and the digital view would possibly open to Amsterdam, Iran or some other place.
OUR TAKE: This is an incredible example of not only how far the art of dance is capable of pushing the envelope to highlight inclusivity, but also of the profound advancement of the awareness of the capability of disabled people. That truth — that disabled people can contribute to society in many ways, including performance art — is boring its way into the mainstream.
To read the full story in The New York Times, click here.
SUBSCRIBE TODAY!
You must be logged in to post a comment.