Cybernetic Futures Inst. 4
Technoetic Arts &
the Spiritual & Occult in Art, Film,
Screen-Dance + Networked Performance
THE VISION ARCHIVE
Vision Archive #1
Written by Dr Lila Moore
All Rights Reserved
2.10.2024
The Vision Archive is an ongoing documentation process of artworks, artist statements, manifestos, academic articles, and monographs by Dr. Lila Moore. The documents are assembled on ADA—The Archive of Digital Art and Dr. Lila Moore’s websites.
The poet Paul Valéry stated: “A work is never completed, but merely abandoned.” While this statement reflects the nature of the artistic process, it also highlights the unfortunate state of abandonment that artworks endure. Moreover, those of us who started working in the 1980s are aware not only of the lack of cameras and filming equipment, especially in remote geographic locations but also of the overall resistance to documenting, especially performance art.
Performative artworks were actions that, once performed, were meant to disappear, resembling a mirage, a vision and energy that happens in a unique moment in spacetime. Capturing a dynamic event was regarded as anti-performance; it killed the dynamism of the moment, turning the living action into a frozen still destined for a photographic death.
The following section from Lila Moore’s PhD thesis (2001, pp. 17-18) explicates the problem of documenting performance:
In Laurie Anderson's Forward to RoseLee Goldberg’s book: Performance Live Art since the 60s (1998), the problem of the transition from one medium to another is addressed. According to Anderson, performance art is a form that in principle “resists documentation” (Goldberg, 1998, p.6). Anderson’s approach to her work reveals the dilemma involved in the formal transition of live art to a recorded form in which the live event is preserved. It conveys her changing attitudes towards the medium of performance and live art:
I myself used to be very proud that I didn't document my work. I felt that, since much of it was about time and memory, that was the way it should be recorded – in the memories of the viewers – with all the inevitable distortions, associations and elaborations. Gradually I changed my mind about making records of events… I started to keep track of things… When live art is documented through film or audio recordings it immediately becomes another art form – a film or a record – another rectangle or disk. It's in the can (Goldberg, 1998, pp. 6-7).
Anderson addresses the importance of preserving live art, which is not recorded by the mass media. The preservation of live art becomes crucial, especially as “it is the anarchic and experimental arm of our culture” (Goldberg, 1998, p. 7). Although recording live art is a contradiction in terms, not keeping a record of it is somehow peculiar, as “we live in a time in which everything gets captured and processed and made to fit into boxes and categories” (Goldberg, 1998, p.7).
The contradiction between live and photographed performances sparked a transformative journey in my artistic career. I began using photography in a performative manner, a concept I later termed “performed photography” (Ibid., 162). This shift from my early attempts at painting to a medium more suited to capturing an ineffable dimension was a pivotal moment. The notion of invisible, film-like screens emerged as an aesthetic option and sensibility, marking a significant evolution in my artistic expression.
In the featured images from one of my early multimedia performances in the 1980s, the characters dissolve into the urban environment, reflecting their shattered psyches. Despite the unfortunate circumstances, the resilience of young women in the face of adversity was palpable. In some places in the Middle East, our ‘so-called performance art’ was considered an abomination. Our well-being and the integrity of our body and psyche were under attack. Hence, the surviving images reflect our psychic navigation in the poverty-stricken territory of the urban anima mundi.
References
Goldberg, L. R. (1998). Performance Live Art Since the 60s. Thames and Hudson.
Moore, L. (2001). Dance on Screen, PhD Thesis, Middlesex University. Cybernetic Scribe.
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Shuttere Psyches 1980s Multimedia Performance by Lila Moore
Published by ADA - Archive of Digital Art
Vision Archive #2
Written by Dr Lila Moore
All Rights Reserved
13.10.2024
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LIGHTS IN THE DARKNESS
by Lila Moore
Multimedia Performance created and performed by Lila Moore in 1982 as part of a Biennale for Young Artists at
Haifa Museum of Modern Art.
Description written in 1985 by Lila Moore
The performance titled "Lights in the Darkness" depicted the obsessed state of a poet involved in the search for a lost vision. In his vision, he briefly encountered a mysterious woman whom he lost in the distance and the darkness of the night.
The protagonist of the performance portrayed the poet's obsession with the mysterious woman. TThe performance was accompanied by a female voice reciting passages from the poem The Desire to Paint by Charles Baudelaire. The poem depicted the poet's desire for a mysterious woman. The poetic text was divided into sections by a soundtrack made of a montage of medieval music. The protagonist’s performance was coordinated with the poetic text, the music, and the slides projected in the background. The slides added further visual associations to the audio and live event, and provided the performance with changing scenery.
In the first section of the performance, the protagonist was seen wearing a red dress with long oval shapes of transparent plastic attached to it. Another oval shape made of plastic was used to crown her head as it was pulled backward and reached her back. The woman sat on a stool while holding sheets of white paper in one hand and a glass of wine in the other. She acted as if she were reciting poetry, reading from the sheets of paper as she drank the wine ecstatically. Simultaneously, in the background, slides depicting the city of Florence at night and a lit church interior were projected. The slides located the protagonist in the scenery of a city with a great artistic tradition and a religious setting. The audio-visual elements and live performance signified that the poet's search for the mysterious woman was compared to an ecstatic artistic and religious experience.
In the second section of the performance, the protagonist's search for the lost vision took place near an imaginary, dreamy-looking castle next to a silvery lake at night. This location was represented by a projected slide of a dreamy castle and a lake, which served as the backdrop for the live act. The protagonist seemed to be signaling to an unseen presence at one of the castle's windows. She signaled with flashes of light, projecting them onto a hand mirror by using a torch, holding the mirror in one hand and the torch in the other. She delicately created an atmosphere of playful mystery as she moved stylistically, holding the torch and the mirror, accompanied by the sound of gentle bells.
In doing so, she was signaling to the mysterious presence, which was neither seen nor reached. In this way, the section depicted the playful mystery involved in the poet's search for the desired female presence.
In the third section of the performance, the search intensified as the protagonist moved away from the castle's view into a field of scattered rocks and bushes. She was seen as attempting to invoke the lost feminine and sensual identity she was searching for. She sat on the ground (floor) and danced as the field was projected in the background, with the slide providing the field’s scenery. The music enhanced her "wild-looking" dance. This section depicted the poet's desire for the sensuality of his unseen vision, coupled with the frustration and isolation of his search.
In the fourth section of the performance, the protagonist expressed the changing attitudes of the poet toward his female vision. His feelings for her were described as attraction mingled with fear and lust. The protagonist was seen lying next to an imaginary "lake" created by a mirror placed on the floor. A spotlight was reflected at the center of the mirror to represent the image of the moon. In the background, a projected slide depicted a medieval picture of hell, showing the devil and his tormented slaves. (Satan by Coppo di Marcovaldo) Naked men and women were shown as they were swallowed by the devil. The protagonist was lying on her stomach and repeatedly raised her head and torso upwards as she supported her upper body on her bent arms. She opened her mouth widely and then returned to a lying position like a lizard. Simultaneously, the recited poetic text described the poet's changing and dramatic feelings towards the mysterious woman. The woman was compared by him to a mysterious full moon on a cloudy and stormy night, and the Witch of Thessaly, turning into a terrifying and demonic black sun.
The fifth section of the performance concluded the poet's search with the observation that his desire for the mysterious woman marked his downfall as a man but established his glory as an artist. It was concluded that his desired subject was serving as a muse and as the fuel for his creative drive. In this section, a view of the lit city of Florence at night was projected from a slide. Grotesquely masked, the protagonist was seen reflected in the city’s view as she danced while supporting one leg on a table. On the table were two lit candles, a glass of wine, and white sheets of paper. The protagonist repeatedly bent her back and arms forward towards her lifted and bent leg, then rose with a curved back and arms as she stretched her back and arms backward. The grotesque mask and the bizarre dance, consisting of repeated movements, denoted the motivation to maintain and continue the poet's inner and fantastic search.
Lights in the Darkness by Lila Moore
Contemporary Summary
"Lights in the Darkness" is a multimedia performance created and performed by Lila Moore in 1982 at the Haifa Museum of Modern Art. The performance revolves around the story of a poet's obsessive search for a mysterious woman, a vision he briefly encountered and then lost in the darkness of night. The performance explores themes of desire, artistic inspiration, and the complexity of the poet's emotional and spiritual journey.
The performance was structured into five sections, each depicting different stages of the poet’s search. Throughout the performance, a female voice recited passages from the poem The Desire to Paint by Charles Baudelaire, which portrayed the poet’s longing for an enigmatic woman. These recitations were accompanied by a soundtrack consisting of medieval music, enhancing the dramatic atmosphere. Projected slides provided changing visual settings that were synchronized with the poetic text, music, and the protagonist's stylised movements, creating a multimedia experience.
In the first section, the protagonist appeared in a red dress adorned with oval shapes of transparent plastic, with an additional oval-shaped piece crowning her head. Sitting on a stool, she held white sheets of paper in one hand and a glass of wine in the other, simulating the act of reading poetry while drinking ecstatically. Slides in the background depicted the city of Florence and a lit church interior, situating the protagonist in a space imbued with both artistic tradition and religious significance. This section established the poet's search as a quest with both artistic and spiritual dimensions.
The second section transported the protagonist to a dreamy, imagined setting near a castle and a silvery lake, represented by a projected slide. Here, she attempted to signal an unseen presence at the castle’s window, using flashes of light from a torch projected onto a hand mirror. Accompanied by the sound of gentle bells, the protagonist's stylized movements created an atmosphere of playful mystery. This scene emphasized the elusive nature of the poet’s desired vision, which remained unseen and unreachable, heightening the sense of longing.
In the third section, the protagonist moved away from the castle and into a field of scattered rocks and bushes, where she sat on the ground and performed a wild-looking dance. The slide projections continued to provide the visual backdrop, this time depicting a natural, rugged landscape. The protagonist's dance symbolized the poet’s deep yearning for sensuality, but also reflected his frustration and isolation in his ongoing search for the lost vision.
The fourth section depicted a shift in the poet’s emotional response to the woman. The protagonist was shown lying next to an imaginary lake created by a mirror placed on the floor, reflecting a spotlight representing the moon. In the background, a slide illustrated a medieval image of hell, with the devil and his tormented slaves. (Satan by Coppo di Marcovaldo) As the protagonist lay on the ground, raising her upper body like a lizard by a lake, moving between ecstasy and despair, the poet’s feelings for the woman evolved, blending fear and lust. She was compared to a full moon, the Witch of Thessaly growing into a terrifying and demonic black sun, a metaphor for the poet's internal turmoil.
The performance concluded with the fifth section, in which the poet’s obsession with the mysterious woman led to his downfall as a man, but simultaneously cemented his artistic legacy. The woman, now serving as his muse, became the driving force behind his creative expression. In this section, the protagonist was grotesquely masked and danced with one leg on the table, surrounded by lit candles, a glass of wine, and white sheets of paper. Her bizarre and repeated movements symbolized the poet's relentless pursuit of his inner vision, a journey that would fuel his artistic creativity, even as it consumed him emotionally.
Overall, "Lights in the Darkness" is a compelling exploration of desire, artistic obsession, nonbinary identity, double consciousness, and the complex relationship between the search for inspiration and personal identity. Through the use of multimedia elements, Lila Moore creates a haunting, surreal atmosphere that mirrors the poet’s emotional and psychological state.
Lights in the Darkness as a portrayal of Double Consciousness
Excerpt from The Shaman of Cybernetic Future Moore, L. (2018). The shaman of cybernetic futures: art, ritual and transcendence in fields of the networked mind. Cybernetics & Human Knowing, 25(2-3), 119-141.
"Lights in the Darkness (Moore, 1982) was a multimedia piece which I performed at the Haifa Museum of Modern Art. Inspired by Charles Baudelaire’s poem “The Desire to Paint,” the somewhat androgynous protagonist assumed both the characters of the poet and his demonic double and muse, who since disappeared in the darkness of one unforgettable night, haunts his visions with the intensity of a midnight black sun. The presence of the poet’s double in space, the double which interchangeably signified the poet or the muse, was hinted by the performing protagonist’s reflection that fell on the projected imagery or was reflected in mirrors, which were utilized as part of the performance and the setting. These initial images of the double as a reflection or apparition hovering on or seemingly moving within physical and ethereal sites and interiors were my first explorations of moving within what I currently term as noetic fields of the mind".
(Moore, 2018, pp.121-122).
Lights in the Darkness
Published by ADA Archive of Digital Art
https://digitalartarchive.at/database/work/5299/