HUMANE SLAUGHTER ACTS PERFORMANCE FESTIVAL

EVENT INFORMATION

WHAT:Slaughterhousespace presents Humane Slaughter Acts Performance Festival, a half-day event of live performance art by eight prominent Bay Area performance artists.

WHEN: Nov 3, 2007

WHERE: Slaughterhousespace: 280 Chiquita Rd, Healdsburg, CA

HOURS:Saturday, 3:30 - 7 pm

ADMISSION:FREE

SCHEDULE:

3:30-4:00: exhibition on view

4:00-4:30: Sean Fletcher and Isabel Reichert
CONVERSATION WITH AN AUCTIONEER

4:35-4:55: Jordan Essoe
APRIL

5:00-5:20: Patricia Diart
A SMALL DRAG MADE BY REPEATED PASSAGES

5:25-5:40: intermission

5:40-6:00: Jonathon Keats
VOV THE WHORE

6:05-6:25: Mabel Negrete
THE GOLDEN PENTHOUSE

6:30-6:50: Praba Pilar and Erika Hannes
CABARET MARX

INFORMATION:Please visit www.slaughterhousespace.com

More…

Slaughterhousespace, a converted century-old cattle slaughterhouse on the grounds of Duchamp Winery is proud to present the debut of the Humane Slaughter Acts Performance Festival, an extraordinary half-day event of contemporary performance art. Eight of the Bay Area’s foremost performance artists will present six independent twenty-minute performances that engage with a rigorous spectrum of subject matter, from the prison system in California to mass rape in Sudan to the bee population on the property of the Duchamp Winery itself. Including elements of photography, video, music, monologue, and interactive group instruction, original works will be debuted by artists Patricia Diart, Jordan Essoe, Sean Fletcher and Isabel Reichert, Jonathon Keats, Mabel Negrete, and Praba Pilar with Erika Hannes.


Director of Slaughterhousespace and sculptor Pat Lenz says, “It is an honor to give these artists the opportunity to explore such important themes within a space that is so conspicuously saturated with its own intense history. This place served as a killing floor for many years, but now it is about illuminating the experience of living.” Before performances begin, and during intermission, Lenz’s neon installation “Eat/Death” will be on view as the exhibition portion of the festival, along with a video art work about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict “Omega Man” by Jordan Essoe.

The first event of its kind in the Northern California Wine Country, this festival provides a unique opportunity for diverse audiences throughout the Bay Area to witness six powerful examples of contemporary performance art in one sitting.

Performing artist and festival co-founder Jordan Essoe explains, “It’s very rare to see this many polished performance artists in one program, all presenting new work on a single date. But as an artist, you can’t help but be inspired by this site. It’s a challenging setting that provides a potent channel for addressing social, political, and human rights concerns - and the building itself is acoustically and aesthetically remarkable.”

All participating artists were encouraged to consider the Humane Slaughter Act of 1958, which attempted to legislate “humane” methods for slaughter, as an abstract theme for their work. Each of the six performances sample this thread in distinctly different and compelling ways, through the use of allegories, auctioneering, and even burlesque cabaret!