I am planning to do a durational performance this weekend, Saturday night, here in Ennis Co Clare.
Why crawl? See pic above, and also:
I’m interested in the juxtaposition of the functionality of crawling- as opposed to the emotive response people might have towards seeing someone.
A baby crawling = delight
A drunk person crawling = disgust
A disabled person crawling, like my child, who cannot walk upright unaided, who crawls from A to B when she needs something, upsets me as I would prefer if she didn’t have to crawl. I find myself getting emotionally affected by the sight of her crawling after her cousins for example, even though it makes perfect sense and allows her to be mobile and is how she gets around as she CANNOT WALK. It pisses me off for the same reasons that I get so fucking angry when people say ‘Ahh isn’t she great’, or talk to me instead of her, or offer to say a prayer for her, which has happened, etc in the street when they see her in her wheelchair. I like to think I’ve processed and moved on from the standard response to her disability, which is mawkish sympathy, and then every time I see her crawling across the landing whooomp there it is again in my gut.
So crawling is also associated with begging, being destitute, being poorly in some way, maybe too weak to walk or too sick. It’s also A form of moving while staying hidden or out of sight. Commando crawling. Or keeping out of the way.. like soldiers crawling up a beach dodging artillery.
It’s also used as a fitness tool. I regularly had clients crawl around during my classes and sessions when I worked as a trainer. Cross crawling, as it’s called, is when you move in a contra-lateral patten, right leg in coordination with left hand for example. This forces the right and left hand side of your brain to work together, forging new Neuro links across the 2 brain sides. Cross crawling is also a functional core movement.
My crawl performance is a measure of my progress through this performative art action journey I am on at present. I have gotten to a point where I am able to make this work and to justify it. What’s the point of doing it?
It’s a disruption of the norm.
It’s a new visual perspective from low down on the night time experience of traversing the streets of my locality. Feet, drunk shouting, rubbish, dog shit, rain. That’s what I anticipate.
It’s an homage to my kid. If she can do it so will I.
