Questions & explanations
1. Explain how Butler's theory of assembly applies to a virtual gathering, like an online protest. Is it still performative?
Butler's theory focuses on physical bodies in space, but a virtual gathering can also be performative. When people use the same hashtag or change their profile pictures together, they create a visible collective. Their online actions—posting, sharing, commenting—are performative acts that say 'we stand together'. However, the lack of physical bodies may weaken the sense of presence and risk. Butler argues that bodies in public are vulnerable and that vulnerability is part of the political message. Online, the risk is lower, so the performative power may be different. Still, virtual assemblies can coordinate real-world action and build community.
2. How does queer body art differ from traditional performance art?
Traditional performance art often focuses on universal themes like time, space, or the body itself, without directly addressing gender or sexuality. Queer body art, on the other hand, specifically uses the artist's body to explore queer identity, which means non-straight or non-cisgender experiences. It often includes elements of drag and aims to subvert, or challenge, social norms about gender and sexuality. While traditional performance might be about endurance or pain, queer body art is more about expressing and celebrating marginalized identities. The goal is to make the audience think differently about what is normal.
3. What is queer body art?
Queer body art is performance art where the artist uses their body to explore and challenge ideas about gender and sexuality. It often involves drag, which is dressing and acting like a different gender for artistic or political reasons. This art form aims to subvert, or upset, traditional norms about how people should look or behave based on their gender. For example, a performer might wear makeup and clothing that mix male and female styles to show that gender is not fixed. Queer body art helps express identities that are not straight or cisgender, meaning not identifying with the sex assigned at birth.
4. Compare queer body art with mainstream drag shows. How are they similar and different?
Both queer body art and mainstream drag shows use drag to explore gender, but their goals differ. Mainstream drag shows, like those on TV, often focus on entertainment, comedy, and lip-syncing, and may not challenge norms deeply. Queer body art, however, is more likely to be political and subversive, aiming to upset traditional ideas about gender and sexuality. For example, a queer body artist might create a performance that makes the audience uncomfortable, while a drag show aims to please the crowd. Both celebrate queer identity, but queer body art is usually more experimental and critical.
5. Compare a walking art piece to a happening. How are they similar?
Both are live, time-based events that involve participation. In a happening, participants do simple actions; in a walking piece, they walk. Both blur art and life, using everyday activities. Both are often unscripted and change with the participants. Both can be done anywhere, not just in galleries. However, happenings often involve many different actions, while walking art focuses on the single act of walking. Happenings are usually one-time events; walking art can be repeated. Both emphasize experience over product, but walking art often has a stronger connection to nature and place.
6. Compare Dewey's view of aesthetic experience with watching a movie for entertainment. How are they different?
Watching a movie for entertainment might be passive—you just sit and watch without thinking deeply. Dewey's aesthetic experience is active and complete. You are fully involved, and the experience has a beginning, middle, and end that feels satisfying. Entertainment can be distracting, but aesthetic experience is meaningful and stays with you. Also, entertainment often follows a formula, while aesthetic experience is fresh and unique. Dewey would say entertainment can become art if it engages you fully, but many movies are just shallow fun. So the key is the quality of engagement.
7. Compare Nancy's idea of community with a traditional community like a village. How are they different?
A traditional village community often shares land, customs, and a common identity. People feel they belong because they are similar. Nancy's community is the opposite: it does not rely on sameness. In his view, a true community respects each person's difference and does not try to make everyone think alike. A village might pressure members to conform, but Nancy's community allows for disagreement and change. Also, a village has clear boundaries, while Nancy's community is open and always changing. So one is about unity, the other about connection without losing individuality.
8. What does the title 'When Faith Moves Mountains' mean?
The title comes from the saying 'faith can move mountains,' meaning that strong belief can achieve the impossible. In the work, 'faith' is the belief that collective action can make a difference, even if the change is tiny. The volunteers had to have faith that their effort was meaningful, even though the dune barely moved. The title is ironic because the mountain (dune) does move, but only a little. It suggests that faith alone is not enough; action is needed, but the result may be modest. The title invites us to think about hope and effort in the face of huge challenges.
9. Compare a Fluxus assemblage to a traditional sculpture in a park.
A traditional park sculpture is often made of durable materials like bronze or stone, meant to last outdoors. It is usually large and static. A Fluxus assemblage is often small, fragile, and made of found objects. It might be displayed indoors in a box or on a shelf. The park sculpture is designed to be permanent, while the assemblage might be temporary or changeable. The park sculpture is a single object, while the assemblage is a collection of items. The meanings also differ: the sculpture often represents something grand, while the assemblage comments on everyday life.
10. Compare maintenance art to a happening. How are they different?
Both involve everyday actions, but their goals are different. A happening is often playful and spontaneous, blurring art and life for fun. Maintenance art is more serious and political. It focuses on work that is usually hidden and undervalued. Happenings are often one-time events, while maintenance art can be ongoing. For example, Ukeles' 'Touch Sanitation' took months. Also, happenings often invite the audience to join, while maintenance art may have the artist doing the work alone. Both use simple actions, but maintenance art has a clear message about labor and value.
11. Explain how Dewey's theory applies to a participatory performance where the audience is asked to do something. Why is the audience's role important?
In a participatory performance, the audience does not just watch—they act. Dewey would say this creates a richer experience because the audience is fully engaged. Their actions become part of the art. For example, if the audience is asked to dance, they feel the music in their bodies. This is more than passive viewing; it is a complete experience. The performance is not finished until the audience participates. Dewey's theory values this active involvement because it makes art continuous with life. The audience's role is to complete the experience and make it meaningful.
12. What is body art related to race?
Body art related to race is performance art where the artist uses their body to explore issues of race, ethnicity, and colonialism. It often involves Black, Indigenous, and diasporic practices, meaning art made by people of African, Native, or other backgrounds who live outside their ancestral lands. The art might address racism, cultural identity, or the history of oppression. For example, an artist might paint their body with symbols from their culture to reclaim their heritage. This type of body art can be a way to heal from trauma and to challenge stereotypes.