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[Jesus Malverde]

This message was self-deleted by its author (Jesus Malverde) on Fri Dec 20, 2013, 08:43 AM. When the original post in a discussion thread is self-deleted, the entire discussion thread is automatically locked so new replies cannot be posted.

[1000words]

1. Um ... Okay.

[MrModerate]

2. Like much (most?) performance art . . .

The 'how silly' factor vastly overwhelms the 'ick' factor.

[Jesus Malverde]

6. Is the art the performance, the reaction or both?...

[jberryhill]

9. It's more of a crafting project, like my candles

I save my earwax and belly button lint for a year.

Then, I twist the lint into a strand, mold the wax around it, and put it on my birthday cake.

[MrModerate]

28. I'm not eating that cake. n/t

[MrModerate]

26. All of the above, and none of it matters. n/t

[Gravitycollapse]

18. What exactly is "silly" about this?

[MrModerate]

27. 'Silly' is a grab-bag word for . . .

Pointless, precious, artless, uninteresting, twee, self-indulgent, and fatuous.

[Gravitycollapse]

38. Is that how you see this performance piece?

[MrModerate]

103. Yes.

[Gravitycollapse]

107. That is inarguably sad.

[HappyMe]

108. Why?

This is considered art. Everyone can like or dislike as they choose.

I wouldn't consider it sad if you did not like Renoir or Hopper.

[Gravitycollapse]

109. There is a difference between disliking a work and thinking it "silly."

This is also a form of political and social activism. And that is not something to be laughed at.

[1000words]

111. Provocative art solicits a response

Last edited Wed Dec 18, 2013, 11:56 PM - Edit history (1)

All kinds. To diminish one over another, diminishes the creation itself.

[Gravitycollapse]

112. Each response needs to be explicated.

Saying it is gross or silly or stupid shit is not adequate. It is indicative of reactionary nonsense. Sorry not every response is the right one.

[1000words]

113. Says you.

If you happen to think the poster's opinion is something they pulled out of their behind, perhaps try and see it as "performance art."

[HappyMe]

115. I happen to think that your dismissive

attitude and demand for a 'right' (read -agree with you) response is reactionary nonsense.

[Gravitycollapse]

116. I happen to think that the elementary school responses in this thread...

are indicative of a bunch of Philistines trying to trivialize a piece of art and political protest because they don't understand it and it makes them feel uncomfortable.

I'm less concerned with people poo-pooing me because I refuse to espouse the classic liberal "everyone is right" nonsense in the face of a wave of sexist responses.

[HappyMe]

118. Good for you.

Sorry we won't bend to your will.

[joeglow3]

132. THIS is why I hate most defenders of art

They are self-indulgent snobs. If I don't like something, they truly believe it is because I an unintelligent, "don't get it", it makes me feel "uncomfortable", etc.

They cannot accept the possibility that an intelligent, art-loving individual can see something as attention grabbing crap.

This reminds me of a friend who was an art major in college. He loved art and many times pulled all nighters to perfect his art. He would then see fellow students who were lazy and went out of their way to fit every cliche of an artist. My favorite was a female who just pissed and shit in different jars, stacked them, partied all weekend and them came to class on Monday to proclaim her jars art.

Sorry, but seeing something as crap doesn't mean we don't understand art.

[Marr]

165. That was almost exactly my own experience.

If you can actually paint/sculpt/etc. in art school, you'll be looked down upon by every lazy ass loser who signed up because they decided it'd be easy and 'cool' to be an artist sometime in their sophomore year. Most of the art scene is a bad joke, imho-- just a lot of preening know-nothings slapping each other on the back and assuring themselves they're modern-day Picassos.

[Marr]

163. That wouldn't be the traditional, easy position, actually.

The traditional, easy position would be *your* position-- just accepting everything as meaningful art that is worthy of respect and deep consideration. I can't tell you how many completely unconsidered, shock value "performance art" pieces I saw in college and in the years since.

Some art is crap. Some performance art-- some might even say most of it-- is more about self-indulgent attention seeking than making any sort of statement.

[Gravitycollapse]

170. I don't just "accept" anything because it's called art, if that's what you're implying.

I actually understand the purpose of the piece here. Whereas it seems to be pretty clear that most of the negative commenters in this thread don't have the foggiest idea.

[Marr]

175. You've a superior understanding of art, congratulations.

I understand the message fine. It's not exactly subtle.

I don't think I can recall a subtle performance art piece, come to think of it. They tend to be about shock value.

[Gravitycollapse]

176. And what is wrong with being shocking?

[Marr]

181. Is Jack Ass as worthwhile as Bill Moyers?

Are radio shock jocks worthy of your time?

There's nothing specifically wrong with being shocking-- but it *is* predictable, and tends to function as a stand-in for actual talent.

[Gravitycollapse]

182. Not all shocks are equal. The motivation for the shock is important.

Shock jocks tend to be sexist, racist, right-wing assholes. The source of their shockingness is their hatred or idiocy.

Whereas this art piece is meant to shock for entirely different reasons. Questioning taboo is almost always shocking. That it is shocking does not mean the person addressing taboo is lacking in talent.

[kwassa]

186. I am not shocked by this piece.

It is just fairly uninteresting. A little obvious symbolism, and nothing else.

[MrModerate]

187. Interesting. I just ran across this response so we might be out of sequence . . .

But your response above is also silly.

And here's why: Your use of the term 'Philistines' shows us that you deny the sincere responses of anyone who doesn't share your view of aesthetics. Please don't try to tell us that there's only one valid aesthetic model, or we will be fully justified in ignoring you entirely.

We don't poo-poo your defense of this work because we think everyone's opinion is equally valid (I'm happy to state categorically that your opinion doesn't hold a candle to mine), although any viewer's response to the piece should be respected, since response is what art is all about.

You have no way of knowing that those who criticize the piece 'don't understand' it. I think most of us understand it quite well, and dismiss it as trivial self-aggrandizement. The fact of the matter is that the piece (and the artist) are self-trivializing and those of us who dismiss her work don't really have to do any heavy lifting in that department.

'Political protest?' Please. To the degree that there is a political element to this work is is extremely slight and obvious to the point of ridiculousness.

And, while there are quite possibly some sexist comments in this thread (which the artist has deliberately courted by explicitly stating 'I'm going to confront you with my vagina'), most of the comments I've looked at consider the piece on its (rather meagre) merits.

Sometimes bad art is just bad art.

[Gravitycollapse]

194. Ah, okay, so she was asking for it. That sounds familiar...

Let me go figure out where I've heard that before.

You are right on one thing. There doesn't seem to be much heavy lifting in the dismissal of her work. The dismissals seems to revolve around the silliness or stupidity of the work. Or, as can be seen down thread, apparently she shoved a ball of yarn into her vagina because needs to have sex with a man. None of these responses are particularly intellectual in nature.

[MrModerate]

199. In the interview the artist specifically addresses her intent to confront on a sexual level.

Your turning that into a snide attack reveals more about you than it does about any other commenter.

[Gravitycollapse]

209. She's asking for people to think and be provocative. Not be sexist pigs.

I guess many don't understand the difference.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10024192192#post168

[MrModerate]

210. I don't think you understand the conventions of performance art . . .

Which deliberately provokes a wide range of responses from viewers, so that the responses themselves (the alpha and omega of responses) become part of the piece itself.

To imagine that the artist didn't design the piece to generate such responses is naïve.

[Gravitycollapse]

211. Rude and stupid responses should be expected. But not on a message board like DU.

We are supposed to be the enlightened left. Not a bunch of sexist assholes.

[MrModerate]

241. I don't disagree . . .

But I don't expect progressives to be angels, either. I haven't dug deeply in the other comments here because they don't particularly interest me. I'll take your word for it.

[snooper2]

280. you are exactly right...

The correct response is- Fucking Hilarious

[HappyMe]

114. There are better ways to get a point across.

We laugh at the mispelled teabagger signs. They consider what they are doing political and social activism. Who decides what a person should consider silly or not?

[Gravitycollapse]

117. The question is why does someone consider it silly.

Whether or not that is simply a "gut" reaction is important to the topic.

[HappyMe]

120. Who gets to decide what is silly?

Who gets to decide that someone's opinion is worthless?

[Gravitycollapse]

124. An opinion is worthless if it is not backed up with considerable explanation.

For instance, calling this exhibit "stupid shit" is a worthless statement unless someone can actually give a detailed explanation of why it is "stupid shit." But my suspicion is that these types of responses are given by people who simply don't know what they are talking about, saw a woman pulling yarn out of her vagina and displayed the classic "gross" reaction. No thought.

[HappyMe]

127. You are the one demanding "considerable explanation".

The fact of the matter is, is that nobody owes you any such thing.

Like it or not, people can post their opinions with or without any explanation at all.

You have answered my questions.

[Gravitycollapse]

131. I'm not demanding an explanation. I'm saying that without an explanation...

these "this is gross or stupid or silly" responses in this thread amount to nothing more than childish taunts.

[HappyMe]

138. That's your opinion.

And of course, you are entitled to it.

[DisgustipatedinCA]

274. Have you been able to find anyone who gives a shit about your disapproval?

Peoples's reactions to art are subjective. You don't get to be The Decider.

[Gravitycollapse]

275. Ahhhh....no. Subjectivity doesn't demand assholery.

Justifying a sort of metaphysical stupidity that converts into being a prick isn't justified under any circumstance. Often expected, never justified. That's the difference.

[Scout]

126. my "Primary gut reaction" and my thoughtful, considered opinion

are that this is a silly, ridiculous, overindulgent piece of crap.
it says that someone is desperately seeking attention, but has no real artistic talent.
i can knit too, so what if she shoves a skein of yarn up her vagina, now she's making a great statement!!

"are indicative of a bunch of Philistines trying to trivialize a piece of art and political protest because they don't understand it and it makes them feel uncomfortable. " arrogant twaddle, this.

[Gravitycollapse]

128. "so what if she shoves a skein of yarn up her vagina" - Ummm, that's kind of the entire point.

To reconstitute the vagina and menstruation as productive in an unexpected way. It transforms menstruation and all of the expelled blood and material involved into a wearable object that is supposed to help dispel the "grotesqueness" associated with menstrual blood.

[Scout]

135. sure, cause the vagina and menstruation have NEVER been productive

when women have been squeezing babies out of them for millenia....

oh, but she pulls yarn out of hers then knits, so gosh, that's brilliant!

"wearable object" really? who the fuck is going to wear the scarf? for one thing it's like 20 feet long, not to mention the menstrual blood. i wouldn't, and i bet many others feel the same, wear a scarf made with anyone's blood in it, menstrual or not. you can't actually believe that she expects a person to wear it?? LOL

[HappyMe]

136. Oh good grief!

I saw a used tampon in the ladies room at the bar on Friday. Sorry, but that was fucking gross.

[Gravitycollapse]

140. But why was it gross?

[HappyMe]

144. Because being a pig and flinging your

used tampon on the floor, rather than flushing it or using the small trashcan provided is gross and inconsiderate.

[Gravitycollapse]

147. So it's a minor annoyance that trash was not disposed of properly. How does that make it gross?

[HappyMe]

149. It's a biohazard.

Somebody I don't know yanked it out of their crotch. It's incredibly inconsiderate of the other women in the bar.

Who the hell are you to tell me what a minor annoyance is.

What would you have me do? Pick it up, rub it on my face and scream "Here me roar!1"

This conversation is past ridiculous.

[Gravitycollapse]

152. Discarded feminine hygiene products do not constitute a biohazard according to OSHA.

In the same way that tissue used to absorb blood from a bloody nose is not a biohazard.

They do not have to be specifically regulated waste according to the Bloodborne Pathogens Standards.

[HappyMe]

154. And....?

Still piggish behavior, still inconsiderate, still gross.

Pulling yarn out of your crotch, not "art", not "activism", not advancing any cause.

[RiffRandell]

220. Haha!

Next cycle lets rub our menstrual blood on our faces with the little livers (sorry), post pictures titled I AM A WOMAN AND THIS IS ART!!!!!!

[Marr]

167. The same reason a booger on the wall is gross.

For crying out loud, you think THIS is the sort of deep question that meaningful art strives to address?

[Gravitycollapse]

169. Ah, so art can only answer deeper questions than what constitutes grossness.

Got it.

[Marr]

172. Art can address any question the artist likes.

If you're pondering what makes a used tampon gross, however, it's probably crap art intended to shock. There's no shortage of it.

[Gravitycollapse]

174. What does make a used tampon gross?

[Marr]

177. My guess is it's the same thing that makes ear wax gross, boogers, and toe jam gross. /nt

[Gravitycollapse]

178. You haven't actually answered the question. You've just shifted to other things.

What makes a used tampon gross?

[Marr]

183. I suppose it's a question for the world's 3rd grade philosophers.

It doesn't interest me, particularly.

[Gravitycollapse]

184. No, abjectness and grossness are deeply related.

Which is not generally a discussion I hear among 3rd graders. Actually, I rarely hear such a conversation among anyone, let alone the young. But the issue of what constitutes grossness is important when social identities of the abject revolve around their grossness or their inability to conform to what constitutes normative behavior or physicality.

So I ask again, what makes a used tampon gross?

[Marr]

189. This is the sort of silly excrement-doodling the art world has become thoughtlessly attached to.

The fact that your 'art appreciation' stereotype means pondering why a used tampon might be considered gross is more telling than you might think. Not about you so much as the art world itself. It's become silly, predictable, and fascinated with the ugly simply because it gains cheap attention. It's no different than Jack Ass or Tosh.0, in fact.

[kwassa]

191. How are abjectness and grossness related?

Is women's menstrual blood abject?

And what does abjectness even have to do with this performance?

[joeglow3]

222. Actually they did. You just can't respond.

ANY fluids from someone else's body is gross. You would not be cool if I wiped a booger on you. I would not be cool if you threw your shit stained underwear at me. Most people don't want crusty skin falling off after a sunburn thrown at them. And I feel that same way about a bloody tampon. No different. You are trying make an issue when there isn't one.

[Gravitycollapse]

235. You still haven't answered the question without being circular.

That it is gross because it is gross is not actually a response. It's simply restating the question.

[redqueen]

153. Damn. I've been to some dive bars but I've never in my life seen that.

You must have been at one seriously shitty bar.

[HappyMe]

158. No it isn't a shitty bar.

It's a bit of a dive, and there are quite a few regulars. After 9pm or so the hipsters and some others descend. All bets are off after that. Sometimes a pretty dicey group shows up, and I'm sure it was one of them.

[SMC22307]

250. Are you kidding? I've seen it in department stores.

I once had a PT job in a large department store. In the unisex bathroom alone, shitty diapers never quite made it to the trash cans, various bodily fluids were smeared on the toilet seat, used tampons didn't quite make it into the commodes, and occasionally someone hurled. My *favorite* was the used sanitary pad left in a fitting room. It was DISGUSTING. Feces, urine, blood, vomit... they're all equal in my book.

[HappyMe]

130. Thank you!

Well said.

[MrModerate]

139. Glad I wasn't drinking my coffee when I ran across "political and social activism" . . .

Who wants to buy a new keyboard?

I don't 'dislike' this work, per se, although I certainly don't like it.

Art by its nature is an imposition into the mindspace of the consumer. Having imposed, the artist has to take his or her lumps and bouquets as they come.

I am fully within my rights -- obligated, really, if I value art at all -- to criticize it and the effect it has on me.

And the effect of this piece is for me to categorize it under the heading 'silly.'

[Gravitycollapse]

146. Which implies that the artist must handle positive and negative feedback no matter how ridiculous.

And I totally agree. That, however, does not mean that each criticism is reasoned or relevant or even appropriate. You seem to be arguing that you have the right to express your opinion. And I totally agree. Everyone has the right to express their opinion no matter how baseless and idiotic it may be.

[MrModerate]

180. We agree on the 'everyone's got an opinion' part . . .

So far so good. We also agree that opinions are only as credible as the opiner.

I have acted as a professional and semi-professional arbiter of taste for many decades, and my opinions are well founded. If they don't correspond with yours, well . . . that's a matter of opinion.

[EOTE]

278. Baseless and idiotic?

Like the assertion that a tampon scarf is great art? Wow, it's even more high-minded and hipster awesome than "Piss Christ"! One thing's for sure, it's totally not gross. Why can't everyone's opinion be as incredible and informed as yours?

[MrModerate]

133. Actually, I'm a happy person . . .

And happy to call a spade a spade (or in this case a silly a silly).

[WorseBeforeBetter]

3. Maybe Rectal Knitting as a follow-up?

28 days of different cuisines -- around-the-world fun. See who's the most colorful...

[ismnotwasm]

22. Did you just compare a brown eye with a pink eye?

To paraphrase a line from "Clerks2"...

[WorseBeforeBetter]

59. Ha, no.

Somehow I've missed that series...think it's in my Netflix queue somewhere.

[ismnotwasm]

60. It's great for those of us with a sense of humor

That adores Jay and Silent Bob. Or Kevin Smith movies in general

[snooper2]

282. You two need to quit, I really can't stop laughing

Have to go outside...good thing the office is about empty

[Supersedeas]

208. did you have to go there?

[jberryhill]

4. I guess delivery by Christmas is out of the question now

But "defend" it against what?

Some random person who doesn't think it's awesome?

[1000words]

23. Are you saying there's something fishy about the story?

[jberryhill]

63. I'm not going down that slippery slope with you

[1000words]

97. Forgive me, I didn't mean to be lippy.

[Eleanors38]

66. It's the knit-picking artsy-fartsy definitions.

[TwilightGardener]

5. Disappointed to learn that her vagina is not actually doing the knitting.

That would be a neat trick. She's just stuffing yarn up there. Big whoop. Oh, and: Eww!

[jberryhill]

10. I think there is a bar in Tijuana...

[redqueen]

74. Interesting contrast

between the reactions to this, and all that... other stuff.

[Jesus Malverde]

102. Very interesting observation...spot on..nt

[yurbud]

123. that's what I thought-- it would be like chopsticks and then she'd be doing latch-hook with her ass

[TwilightGardener]

145. Lots of clickety-clickety noises and then...a nice scarf emerges, perfect for

that hard-to-shop-for person on your list. "Do you like it? It came from my hoo-hah!"

[yurbud]

195. and you don't mean your Al Pacino imitation

[TwilightGardener]

203. That was more of a "hooWAGHHH", if I recall.

[hibbing]

236. hehe...misleading headline

Well, this certainly is an interesting thread to read. I enjoyed the back and forth about the great "what is art" question.


Peace

[eShirl]

265. Vaginal Yarn Dispensing at best.

[TwilightGardener]

266. LOL.

[Kablooie]

277. In Japan I saw a vagina that could eject 100 yen coins in time to music.

Ah the pleasures of youth.

[snooper2]

283. I know right, now if she was able to do it upside down

THAT would be something!

[TreasonousBastard]

7. I've never heard of her and I have no comment...

concerning her, except that my life is really not different now that I have heard of her.

[TwilightGardener]

17. I will eye handknit Christmas gifts with new suspicion, myself.

You just don't know where that yarn has been.

[TreasonousBastard]

20. Red ones I could maybe deal with,but...

if there's green in there I want to know more.

[zappaman]

8. Chicks rock!

[lumberjack_jeff]

11. I'll stick with penis crochet.

Now I just need a fifteen foot wide end table for this doily.

[grantcart]

34. you have a point there.

[grantcart]

166. You got me wondering what I would find with goggle and "penis crochet"

http://www.theanticraft.com/archive/imbolc07/beanis.htm

http://annetenino.com/x-rated-crochet-gallery/

There actually was quite a bit on the subject but all were focused on products for and not production by the extremity in question.

[lumberjack_jeff]

207. I guess nothing is ever invented for the first time.

[1000words]

259. LOL ... you have way too much time on your hands, Grant

The NSA had a laugh with that one.

[BainsBane]

12. I thought she was going to work the needles with her klegels

This I don't find impressive.

[countryjake]

13. Same here...I'm thinking, WOW, that's some toned kegels...

if she's able to knit with them.

What an utter letdown!

[uppityperson]

14. Hi, why does your profile say you are male?

Profile information
Real name: Jesús Malverde
Gender: Male
About Jesus Malverde

Jesús Malverde, sometimes known as the generous bandit or angel of the poor is a folklore hero in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. One day we\'ll live free and no longer in fear. Fear of losing jobs, fear of being raided, your dogs shot, your children kidnapped by the state. Your land stolen, and maybe even your life lost. Fear no more, the times are a changing.

[Jesus Malverde]

15. The OP has a link to the author..

[uppityperson]

16. Ah, thank you. I was thinking it'd be neat if a DUer did this. thanks, am tired and confused tonight

[Jesus Malverde]

21. No worries.

It's definitely original, political and empowering. Get some rest, we've got some battles to wage!

[Luminous Animal]

25. Thank you for posting this!

[joshcryer]

39. Best to use the "excerpt" button to distinguish.

I actually initially thought this was a DUer admission and was like "wait, that's cool." But I immediately recognized it as an article.

Next time select the text of the article and click "excerpt" and we'll know you're quoting the article!

[Warpy]

19. Well, thank god for blocking.

[K.O. Stradivarius]

24. Final Jeopardy question: "Shit You Can't Make Up".

[IMG][/IMG]

[1000words]

29. This one time, at knitting camp ...

[Pretzel_Warrior]

30. That is gross

[The Wielding Truth]

32. so gross

[Retrograde]

31. I'm a conceptual artist myself

in that I think up great art projects but don't actually produce anything concrete - even performance art is too grounded in reality for me! Now, some nay-sayers will claim that that's just because my own talents and craftsmanship are limited and lacking in ability to produce lasting works, but I ignore these philistines.

Performance art has overall a high "look at ME" quotient to it. I've seen some that I found interesting (like a film of a man in a white suit carrying a glass of red wine across Bordeaux), but most are meh - like most attempts at art, for that matter (even mine, sadly).

[Jesus Malverde]

33. "bODY_rEMIx/gOLDBERG_vARIATIONS" by Marie Chouinard, premiered in 2005 for the Venice Biennale's Int

[grantcart]

35. In the first video at 0:50 Cliffordu makes a cameo appearance.

For those that haven't seen Cliffordu's musical presentation it is a real treat.

He is still mending from his bike accident and has found an innovative way to adapt.

Good on you Cliffordu!

[In_The_Wind]

78. That's rather amusing.

[cliffordu]

104. Hey....Can I lick this on Facebook?

[Pretzel_Warrior]

41. uhhhh....yeah. that's worth the price of admission

[cali]

48. this is dance. nothing weird about it. and it's obviously a riff on Paxton's 1986

work
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=steve+paxton+goldberg+variations&sm=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Paxton

[Jesus Malverde]

100. Thanks for the link and reference...nt

[tblue37]

263. Wow! Those videos are incredible! nt

[Tikki]

36. I like performance art…it is a true act of consent...

Tikki

[joshcryer]

40. I don't know what to think about Interior Semiotics.

But I agree with your premise.

edit: I felt the lady in Interior Semiotics was falling into peer pressure to perform her act, lost her voice, and that's why she exited the room shortly after the end bit. I don't think she's ever admitted this but it just felt uneasy the entire time.

[Tikki]

142. For what it is…someone(s) was supposed to feel uneasy...

Tikki

[joshcryer]

264. Oscar worthy acting then.

But I felt more uneasy at the mostly male crowd and their smug faces taking the debacle in.

[aristocles]

37. Stupid runs rampant in this world

[JI7]

42. this is one of those giving birth with dolphins and other stupid shit

certain types do

[Gravitycollapse]

43. No, it's meant to materialize menstruation in such a way that is not inherently abject.

It's meant to question the taboo surrounding menstruation.

This isn't "stupid shit." Despite many people in this thread not actually understanding what it's about.

[redqueen]

82. Refreshing to see a non-middle-school-level take on this.

(Apologies to any middle schoolers who might take offense to that comparison. I realize not all of you are immature.)

[Comrade Grumpy]

91. I'm a-gonna materialize me some abjectifications right now.

[lumberjack_jeff]

122. "materialize"?

A use of the verb with which I'm unfamiliar.

You're right. I think most in the thread don't understand what it's about - which begs the question, "Is incomprehensible art still art?"

[Gravitycollapse]

125. What makes it incomprehensible?

[lumberjack_jeff]

141. "materialize menstruation"?

Did you mean "imagine" or "re-conceptualize" or "envision"?

Surely I'm not the only one for whom that phrase is gibberish. It makes as much sense as "abrade tuesday".

Not every verb has a relevant place alongside any noun.

[Gravitycollapse]

143. No, I like the verb materialize in this context. It fits well into the rhetoric...

surrounding female sexuality as well as the imagery of yarn that seems to "materialize" out of her vagina.

But now you are criticizing my use of the English language and not the art itself. Which is why I was confused as to why you thought the art was incomprehensible. It doesn't seem to be particularly confusing.

[lumberjack_jeff]

148. Yes. I was questioning your use of the english language.

I get that not every artistic performance is going to be interesting or even apprehensible to everyone. To the people missed by the artist's point, it will look silly. It's a perfectly legitimate reaction.

I'm sure that there are thousands of Andy Warhols out there who create art for the purpose of validating their egos; "Campbells soup cans? How difficult can it be to understand? It just goes to show you that I'm the only one smart enough to truly understand my art".

Personally, I don't feel that watching the extraction of yarn from her vagina has expanded my understanding of the menstrual period.

[snooper2]

284. Teenagers have been doing that since the beginning of time...

It's called, did you get your redwings yet

[eShirl]

44. performance art = meatspace trolling

[sibelian]

45. (chuckle) Bravo to her!

Last edited Wed Dec 18, 2013, 06:17 PM - Edit history (1)

I don't really know whether or not it's "art"...

I remember the "kindly Ones" sequence in Gaiman's Sandman comics where the three Fates were cast as the progenitors, weavers and enders of life, all of which featured yarn as a metaphor for life itself... it's wound into a ball of potential, then knitted into an ordered pattern and finally the yarn is snipped off at the end, which is death. So a yarn creation emerging from the "womb" sort of makes sense to me.

She reminds me of a rather "up for it" lady I saw during Edinburgh festival who performed a "make the handkerchief disappear" trick and took off each item of clothing whose pocket or sleeve the handkerchief subsequently reappeared from. She was extremely funny and she went.... all the way....

[countryjake]

50. The Hanky Panky trick is amazing to me, how does she do it?

Not sure if I saw the same woman as you (I saw that magic trick up in Canada), but I couldn't get done trying to see if she had a whole bunch of handkerchiefs wadded up in her fist by the end or if they were simply floated down to the floor somewhere, lying on the stage just out of our view. The gal we saw was hilarious, too, and the gasps from the audience as she got closer down to bare bones made the whole performance even funnier. A great trick, that one.

[sibelian]

99. Sounds like the same girl!

Ours had the whole crowd roaring with laughter at the end! I bet it's her. Anyway, it got near the end and I was like ".... NO..... FUCKING.... WAY...... AAAAAHHHMYGAWWWD YOU ROCK!!!" it was so funny. It was a variety burlesque thing we saw her at and she got the biggest cheer. She was stylish with it was what got to me...

[sibelian]

200. Awwwwww. I know now.

....pah.

I know you didn't mean to burst my bubble but now I know how it's done I think I actually preferred NOT knowing.

[jberryhill]

202. Yeah I wasn't sure about that

The magic is in the showmanship, though.

[sibelian]

262. True.

The act I described initially will never not be amazing just because of the sheer hutzpah.

[cali]

46. what a self-righteous little prig this woman is. ironic, isn't it?

I've only heard this about a hundred times before. Oh, and judging by her scarves, she can't knit either.

[notadmblnd]

105. Actually, I'd say that she is the total oppisite of a prigg

It's not something that I would have any interest in, either watching or participating. But hey, if that how she feels that she has to express herself, who am I to condemn her?

[MadrasT]

47. Whatever floats her boat.

One of the joys of being Aspie is that most conceptual/abstract stuff goes right over my head... and once I learned there is stuff I just don't "get" because of my AS brain, I stopped trying to figure stuff like this out.

It doesn't make me fo "ewww" it just makes me go "why"? Then, "never mind, too hard to figure out."

[MADem]

52. I don't think you need to have a learning difference to find that performance pointless. nt

[intaglio]

49. If she knits really fast with "Pom-Pom" yarn ...

could be interesting

Though as that is normally acrylic it might burn.

[kaiden]

51. I knit, but I knit outside the box.

[WCGreen]

64. Lol!!!

[mmonk]

75. Pfffffft!

[yurbud]

119. she did the whole performance art piece to set up that joke.

[Ikonoklast]

53. I guess not enough people paid attention to her the first go-round..

Must be desperate.

[HappyMe]

54. Good grief!

It would seem she's peeved because people aren't falling all over with admiration for this. If she considers this art, then she has to know people will love it or hate it. Everybody knows women get their periods, so I don't know where she gets this "...fear and repulsion" from. There are plenty of ads for the endless amounts of tampons, pads, sprays, washes.... There are also people that freak out at the sight of blood when they cut their finger.

[Eleanors38]

67. Blood. Try field-dressing a deer, either sex.

[HappyMe]

68. That includes blood and guts,

and people would say eew! and gross! to that too. Everybody has their gross-out point.

[Eleanors38]

84. No wonder we hate ourselves -- look what's inside! Argh!

[HappyMe]

88. What?

Innards don't make people hate themselves, their mind does that for them.

Edit to add - I've seen people field dress a deer. Didn't bother me in the least.

[Eleanors38]

159. With some trepidation, I use this metaphor: A tongue-in-cheek remark.

'Reminds me, I need to purchase a Butt Out for my next hunt.

[HappyMe]

160. Ah, okay.

[Eleanors38]

164. No problem. Field dressing means 2 memorable steps:

1) Clearing out the bladder/intestinal tract without breaching either

2) You literally are up to your elbows in blood

No problem with the blood; the steam from it is often likened by some cultures to the spirit of the animal rising. But the other end? More mistical than mystical. The tool supposedly helps.

[HappyMe]

171. These people thanked Mother Nature,

and then they thanked the deer for providing them with meat. It was pretty cool.

[Eleanors38]

197. There is a practice in some European countries a well...

The deer's remains complete with head are left in the field with a sprig of the deer's favorite browse in its mouth.

[redqueen]

77. People know, but it's a taboo subject.

There aren't many bodily functions that are treated the way this one is. Taking about it, depicting it in the media, etc. - all of it is more limited because it is more taboo. This is why even the sight of an unused, wrapped pad or tampon in a woman's purse can cause people to start with the silly 'ew gross' type overreactions.

[HappyMe]

80. I have never thought of it as taboo.

Zillions of pad, tampon, washes, douches commercials are on tv - never witnessed anybody freaking at the sight of a wrapped tampon either.

I have never felt the need to talk about my period unless it is with my doctor. I didn't have any friends that would start up a big period discussion, unless one said that their cramps were bad. I don't need to hear about others' bodily functions of any sort.

[redqueen]

81. Commercials are neither here nor there. Completely beside the point.

People talk about bodily discharge and effluvia of all sorts, out in the open, and while some may say tmi or gross or whatever, it is usually treated as a laughing matter. With periods, it is different. If your anecdotal experience is an exception it is no wonder you're confused by the description of this one bodily function as being considered more taboo. If you seek out the experiences of many other women, you will no doubt start to become aware of the pattern you've missed.

Downthread you agree with someone who uses the vomit smiley to express his revulsion and declares how glad he is that he's gay. Even a heterosexual man jumps on board, saying it makes him wish he was.

Can you imagine lesbians saying they're glad they're gay and posting pukey smileys in a discussion which mentions ejaculate? Much less heterosexual women stating they wish they were? Yeah, its blood and not semen, but both are simply bodily fluids.

I'm actually embarrassed for people who regress to such childish behavior at the mention of certain types biology. Cringeworthy stuff, much moreso than the subject of the OP, IMO.

[HappyMe]

86. I don't talk about anybody's bodily functions

with anyone. I don't care to hear about your pee, crap, period, vomit, sperm....

I'm not likely to seek out discussions of other women's periods or reproductive functions, simply because it's none of my business. I don't feel oppressed because nobody wants to over-share about this either. Unless I have a friend with an illness (cancer or other) none of the women in my circle discuss this at all.

I did not agree with the poster that said he was glad he was gay. I said I was wondering when somebody would say that. I found the remark funny. You did not.

I wouldn't care if a lesbian posted a pukey sign about sperm, or stating that she was glad that she didn't have to deal with it. It would be her opinion, and I'm not likely to be offended by it. What she thinks doesn't effect me in a negative or positive way at all.

I don't take everything in life sooo seriously. Not every remark, gesture or smiley has to be seized on and analyzed to death.

[redqueen]

89. This isn't about you, though.

This is about society. Whether or not you are offended by the different reactions to different bodily functions is also beside the point.

The different reactions bear out the taboo nature of menstruation. The creator of this piece, social scientists, and many other people are interested in these dynamics, and in analyzing them. It doesn't mean anyone is "offended".

Oops, on edit, no one is offended besides the people posting pukey smileys, going 'ewwwww', making jokes about their sexuality, etc.

[HappyMe]

90. I'm not a part of society?

[redqueen]

92. What?

Of course you are - but your personal reactions to other people's reactions is not an aspect of this analysis. I don't know how to make that any clearer.

You seem to be intent on not noticing the patterns I'm talking about.

When I pointed out the different reactions to this bodily function as compared to others, you simply responded that you weren't personally offended by those different reactions.

Whether or not anyone is offended by the different reactions is not the issue. The issue is the different reactions themselves. Those reactions bear out the taboo nature of menstruation... which is apparently what this artist was intent on depicting. Looks like she did a good job.

[HappyMe]

93. Well I can only give you my

opinions because I'm not about to generalize about society and why I think they are wrong/right/whatever.

[redqueen]

96. Understood.

And not that I can speak for everyone who finds these different issues interesting, but for me, and many others I know, it isn't about anyone being right or wrong. It's just something that some people find an interesting subject to open up for discussion and analysis.

I know many teenage girls who do think its wrong and even unfair, though. They hear about all kinds of nasty stuff talked about at school, and it's not treated as a big deal. But they get shamed (the 'ewwwww shut up' treatment) for talking about their periods with friends if someone overhears (some women do want to discuss them with other women). It's a subject that is brought up not infrequently, this perception of unfairness. So I imagine it will keep coming up.

[liberal N proud]

55. Lost me at the blood stained wool

Who would even conceive of this???????

[derby378]

156. But at the same time, both sexes shed a lot of blood in competitive sports

It could be football, basketball, hockey, soccer, mixed martial arts, whatever. And yet we continue to watch because of the human drama involved.

I'm no big artsy-fartsy critic, but I see a similar dynamic at work here. The performance process is fairly tedious, but whatever sentiment or abstraction Casey's trying to express, somehow it intrigues me.

[redqueen]

161. Another interesting observation.

The signal to noise ratio in this thread is awful, but the few cogent observations have made it worth sifting through the nonsense.

[get the red out]

56. Whatever works for a person

I prefer a knitting bag, but that's just me.

[surrealAmerican]

57. If she had knit in the round ...

... the finished piece would have had about the same diameter as a vagina.

[Iggo]

58. Huh?

[indie9197]

61. Where's the Volvo she keeps talking about? n/t

[Le Taz Hot]

62. There are very few performance artist and their "art"

that I come close to understanding. This would be one of them. Apparently my mind isn't sophisticated enough.

[Marrah_G]

65. I don't get it

But her art is her art. She shouldn't bother to defend it, she doesn't have to. Like all/most art, there will be people who think it's great and people who don't. People who are the negative side of an issue tend to sound the loudest. People forget that.

[Blue_Tires]

69. Well, she get her millions of YT views, so mission accomplished...

[Liberal_in_LA]

214. +1000

[closeupready]

70. OMG

Things like this make me SO glad I am gay, gay GAY.

[HappyMe]

71. lol! I was kind of waiting for someone to say that.

Cheers!

[Dash87]

72. lol

[jberryhill]

73. Things like this make me wish I was

[closeupready]

76. I suppose we all have our own crosses to bear.

[redqueen]

79. Someone upthread mentioned 'a show in Tijuana'.

I have some idea what he meant, however he reminded me of 'a show in Thailand'.

It strikes me as interesting how different the reactions are to these almost identical acts.

[riderinthestorm]

85. I'm trying to imagine shoving great wads of yarn up my vagina. ..

No. Just no.

I guess this artist truly has suffered for her art!

[yurbud]

121. that was my thought--something dry and itchy, slowly rotating for 28 days

on the plus side, when she's all done, she'll have to toughest vagina in history.

[ohheckyeah]

87. I wish I could un-see that.

I hate blood and I hated my own periods.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

94. This is not art. This is no different from Lady Gaga's meat dress, like...

Miley Cyrus' sports finger, like any other outrageous device or scheme people use to get noticed, or to get a few minutes of fame in the public eye. I find it sad and dumb.

[Gravitycollapse]

110. Do you actually understand the message behind this?

Or are you simply being a reactionary?

[Scout]

129. oh please, DO explain it to we immature middle-schoolers!!

you're such a deep thinker, after all, and we are simply emotional reactionaries

[redqueen]

157. I imagine that most middle-schoolers know that knitting with one's vagina is impossible.

Yet in this thread we see several oh-so-original posts about how people were either "expecting" to see it, or declaring they would have been "impressed" if only that had been the act depicted.

I think we're seeing elementary school levels of commentary and 'humor' in this thread. Clearly 'middle school' was being charitable.

[MNBrewer]

95. THat's not vaginal knitting! It's conventional knitting ...

using yarn that has been stored in a vagina.

I might have been impressed if she actually knitted with her vagina.

[Scout]

137. spot on, this. n/t

[rrneck]

98. Wow. I completely missed the raging debate about this work.

Actually, I never heard of it. Seems a bit derivative though.

http://www.caroleeschneemann.com/interiorscroll.html
Interior Scroll 1975

Performance.

Performed in East Hampton,NY and at the Telluride Film Festival, Colorado. Schneemann ritualistically stood naked on a table, painted her body with mud until she slowly exracted a paper scroll from her vagina while reading from it.

"I thought of the vagina in many ways-- physically, conceptually: as a sculptural form, an architectural referent, the sources of sacred knowledge, ecstasy, birth passage, transformation. I saw the vagina as a translucent chamber of which the serpent was an outward model: enlivened by it's passage from the visible to the invisible, a spiraled coil ringed with the shape of desire and generative mysteries, attributes of both female and male sexual power. This source of interior knowledge would be symbolized as the primary index unifying spirit and flesh in Goddess worship." -CS

Image at link. I don't want to have to listen to a bunch of shit for posting it here.

[LordGlenconner]

101. I just threw up in my mouth

[SMC22307]

253. Grab a skein of yarn and crochet a doily.

Voilà! Artist.

[Laffy Kat]

106. If her objective was to get a conversation going...

she certainly succeeded. I know that's the goal with a lot of performance art, so power to her. No one has mentioned the potential health danger here: remember toxic shock syndrome and Rely tampons? I'd think twice about shoving a fist-sized ball of yarn up my va-jay-jay. Don't try this at home my dears.

[polly7]

134. Weird.

And I've been pee'd on, pooped on, bled on and puked on all within a two hour ambulance trip, I've no aversion to body fluids. I just find this pointless. Whatever floats her boat, though.

[magical thyme]

151. not sure what "ideas" she's attempting to express, but

um, whatever.

"But as an artist, I do seek attention for my work – I want to express and communicate ideas,..."

Most "performance" art strikes me as silly. Precious. Self-important. Attention seeking for the purpose of gaining attention. Meh.

[dipsydoodle]

155. Wonder what she'll do as a follow up.

[TeeYiYi]

173. !...

TYY

[earthside]

162. Oh hum.

I'm an artist.

And I tend towards the avant grade.

So, this kind of 'post-modern' or whatever you want to call it performance art is fine by me.

However, once its been done, well, its been done.

To keep performing the same act over and over again would be like me just painting the same picture over and over and over again.

Sorry to say, therefore, that I find this video as mere self-promotion at this point ... with nothing new to say.

[RiffRandell]

168. That's digusting and she deserves every insult she got and more.

What an embarrassment to women. Maybe she's substituting that yarn for something else that's lacking in her life. Wouldn't surprise me.

What a freak.

[Gravitycollapse]

179. Are you kidding me? Are you really suggesting that her art is simply a result of not having sex?

Oh, and she's a freak now?

This kind of misogynist garbage does not belong on DU. You are an embarrassment to this website.

[HappyMe]

185. Let me ask you something.

Are you male or female?

[Gravitycollapse]

188. Does it make any difference to my argument if I was one or the other?

[HappyMe]

190. Are you male or female?

Answer the question for once.

[Gravitycollapse]

193. Unless you can justify such a disclosure, you're not getting an answer.

I don't disclose personal information in hostile threads precisely because such information will be used as a weapon. If such information is truly relevant to the discussion, I'll reveal it.

So why do you want to know? How will that alter your perception of my argument?

[HappyMe]

196. Garble wharble!

If you have never had a period, keep your wooo floaty love the blood crap to yourself.

[Gravitycollapse]

205. Ah so now you've basically just resorted to calling me a dirty hippie.

I am on a leftist message board, right? I'd didn't stumble into Freeperville by mistake.

[HappyMe]

206. LOL!

No, what I'm saying is if you do not own a uterus, I don't give a shit what you think in regards to menstruation, giving birth, birth control pills....

[LittleBlue]

251. I'm dying here

Nearly pissed myself reading your reply

This thread delivers.

[Quantess]

271. Gravity Collapse used to be open about being male.

It said male on his profile for a long time.

But since one of his favorite topics are "radical feminism" he has apparently noticed that being a dude detracts from his credibility on the subject, since he has removed "male" from his profile info.

[RiffRandell]

212. Knitting bloody/plain yarn out of a vagina is not art to me.

I'm a Mapplethorpe fan, (totally out of her realm) and have 2 pictures of his ART in my house.

I stand by what I said. She's a freak and looking for attention. I'll also add she needs to visit a salon, and not just for those horrid eyebrows. Nasty.

Yeah, I'm REALLY embarrassing to a political website. What's embarrassing are people that defend it and attack others with a different opinion.

[Texasgal]

215. What about piss christ or

the dung baby jesus?


She meant to shock. You don't have to agree with it but attacking her physical looks says alot about you.

[Gravitycollapse]

217. Those were made by men. Therefore it's okay.

[Gravitycollapse]

216. No, you're embarrassing to this website because of your disgusting, woman hating rhetoric.

And I am not the only one who thinks that.

So let's tally up the list:

She's a freak
She needs to go to the hair salon
You don't like her eyebrows.
You think she only does this piece because she needs to have sex with a man.

That last one is quite possibly the worst. I didn't expect knuckle draggers to invade this thread. But, with each passing day, I become less and less surprised at the kind of bullshit that is allowed to exist on DU.

[RiffRandell]

218. Did you ever hear of vibrators?

I NEVER said anything about a man.

I'm sure you're not the only one who thinks that. I never said she was ugly or a DOG.

[Texasgal]

219. But you mentioned her physical attrubutes

and the fact that she needed sex?

[RiffRandell]

221. Oh well.

Her brows are weird, and if you are putting yourself on the internet be prepared for criticism. I suggested maybe she was fulfilling something she was lacking; I tend to think it was more of a shock value.

[Texasgal]

224. It was defiantly shock value

that's what performance art is all about.

Agree or not I think it's weird that you think she needs sex and needs her eye browns waxed.

I found the whole thing strange but I refuse to attack her personally. Performance art kinda makes make people uncomfortable. I guess you are one of them?

[RiffRandell]

226. Not at all.

I think some performance art makes people look like complete fools, depending on what it is. This piece, yes.

[Texasgal]

229. would you have wondered why piss

christ wasn't getting laid?

[Gravitycollapse]

228. You know, it's funny...

Because, and I'm sure you are completely unaware because to be aware would require some knowledge of history, little more than 100 years ago it was common practice for psychiatrists to see "troubled women," women who rocked the cultural and social boat, as suffering from bouts of hysteria or general mental instability. The "cure" for such a problem was that they would go to the doctor, be strapped into a vibrator and brought to orgasm. This was thought to quell the female hysterics long associated with intellectually critical and depressed women.

So, with all of that in mind, I really find your rhetoric on here hysterical. The kind of willful blindness you show towards women and their intellectualism is a form of misogyny a century outdated.

[1000words]

233. Certainly not the only poster whose contributions to this thread ...

have become a "performance piece," in it's own right.

Predictable, mildly amusing .... about as interesting as Ms. Jenkin's effort.

[redqueen]

270. Hmmmm those tactics seem awfully familiar.

[Gravitycollapse]

223. Oh so you were merely implying that she needed to go fuck herself. That's much better.

[RiffRandell]

227. She did, with yarn.

She admitted in the video it turned her on.

[Gravitycollapse]

232. She said in the video that on occasion it was physically arousing.

I hope that isn't what you think constitutes sex.

[polly7]

230. Sorry, you lost me in the spin.

How does: "Maybe she's substituting that yarn for something else that's lacking in her life turn into "she needs to go fuck herself?"

[Gravitycollapse]

231. Well, it's not. The poster implied that something else needed to be inserted to her vagina.

And, in the context of this discussion, that was pretty obviously a reference to penile/vaginal intercourse. The posters attempt now to make it seem as though he or she was not talking about that is just saving face. Which hasn't worked out.

[RiffRandell]

234. Bullshit.

I stand by what I said. I didn't imply it needed to be a man. When she stated she was aroused by the yarn in her vagina, I came to the conclusion she was lacking something.

[Gravitycollapse]

237. She was talking about physical arousal. Which is the result of physical stimulation.

Not that she was having sex with a ball of yarn. Honestly, is that all you took away from the video? No wonder your responses here have been so ridiculous.

[RiffRandell]

239. I don't get aroused by inserting or removing a tampon.

You're trying to be cool, and it's not working:

[polly7]

238. I interpreted it as she needed some kind of attention.

Maybe you just saw what you wanted to, you don't seem receptive at all to allowing people to explain themselves.

[Gravitycollapse]

240. On the contrary, I've been begging people all afternoon to explain themselves.

To explain what it means to see something as "gross." To explain why they see this as silly or why they think being shocking is unbecoming of art. Despite my best efforts, most have simply resorted to circular logic.

Even in the more modest interpretation of that poster's response, the focus is still on an accusation that the artist just needs to get laid or whatever you want to call masturbation or sex. And that is very really a part of the historical subjugation of women behind "female hysteria." I don't think the poster knew that before now; it must honestly have been the result of the very kind of organic thought processes that lead male dominated medical professions to such idiotic conclusions a century or two ago.

[polly7]

242. I'm not sure how you got to 'female hysteria' out of this.

I imagine if the poster had seen a male taping himself making a scarf mixing yarn with a month of ejaculate she'd have probably thought the same about him. Sometimes it's just as easy as ..... people do strange things for attention all the time. Not everyone has to see it as art.

[Gravitycollapse]

244. There's a difference between not enjoying the art and calling an artist physically ugly.

One involves at least a modicum of intellectual thought. The other should be resolved for the elementary school play yard.

[polly7]

246. Your strange accusations throughout this thread

don't contain intellectual thought, imho. It's just a need to dominate and control something you're obviously frustrated you can't - personal choice and the freedom to state it.

[RiffRandell]

247. She could be a good spokesperson for Monistat.

If you ever keep a ball of yarn in your vagina and get an infection....although at that point I would probably see a doctor...or 2.

[polly7]

252. That's for sure ...

for her own sake, I hope she doesn't do this too often. Toxic shock can develop pretty suddenly and be life-threatening. I bet she's glad she doesn't have a cat, or maybe she does and he sleeps while she knits. Mine would have me ripped to shreds.

[1000words]

255. I ain't art unless you suffer!

[polly7]

257. LOL ...

[Egalitarian Thug]

201. Another MRA that doesn't approve...

what a shock!

[LadyHawkAZ]

192. I'm very glad it is important and meaningful to her

because it just isn't to me.

[Botany]

198. If you are making vagina art when you are menstruating would that art be called a ....

.... period piece?

[redqueen]

204. Nice one!

[likesmountains 52]

225. This just seems like someone trying too hard to be edgy...sorry.

[NoOneMan]

243. I hope no one follows this up with penis knitting

[LittleBlue]

245. Vaginal knitting what the foook?

Oh my gawd

[1000words]

248. The very best DU handle is now taken!

Look at the Rec

[LittleBlue]

254. ...

[LAGC]

256. Wonder whose sock that is?

Time will tell.

[1000words]

260. I'd like to welcome our new poster.

In fact, I welcome all vagina-related activities.

[one_voice]

258. Bizarre...

utterly bizarre, especially knitting with yarn that's been menstruated on. Honestly don't understand the need or point of that, also...yuck.

[rrneck]

261. Okay, I went back and looked at this thing.

The title of the piece is called Casting Off My Womb, which employs a play on words using a term for knitting meaning to tie off the piece so that it doesn't unravel. The title of the piece combined with the medium used to perform it (the artist and yarn) and the phrase "vagina knitting" sets up a play on words related to the role of women in society that views them as disposable goods or little more than baby factories, traditional attitudes regarding menstruation as repugnant, the female womb as the source of life, and the societal contradictions associated with the vagina and by extension women in general.

The confrontational nature of the piece is achieved by the shock value of the nude exposure of the artist and the storage of the yarn in her vagina prior to the production of the work. As the yarn is knitted into a long scarf like garment, it is suspended on coat hangers and stained with menstrual blood.

Metaphors relating to female sexuality, reproduction, abortion, the male gaze, and female control of their reproductive process work in conflict and resonate with the surrounding culture to create tension in the content of the piece. So the knitting phrase "casting (tying) off" resonates with "tying tubes" to prevent pregnancy and of course the concept of tying or binding is associated with bondage and repression. And the phrase "casting off" can also be applied to the concept of women as disposable due to infertility or aging. The "product" of the artist's vagina is suspended on coat hangers, an implement which has considerable symbolic associations with "back alley" abortions and the political and cultural repression of