An invitation to find ritual in a quotidian action.

 

In the defunct sanctuary of a toilet, this simple instructional performance provokes the user to reconsider the act of washing our hands.

 

The average Australian washes their hands for only 6 seconds. The Christian narrative of cleanliness focuses on the abstract notions of absolution and inner purity in the eyes of God, and the early fathers of the Church denounced the public bathhouses and condemned the idea of bathing for warmth or pleasure. One third of the world’s population doesn’t have access to a clean or private place to shit.

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This installation invites bathroom-users to indulge in a ritual act of hand washing as a performance of personal, civic, spiritual, and corporeal devotion.

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Presented as part of Love/City Artist-Run Festival at Toot Fanute, Globe Alley, Melbourne

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About Love/City Artist-Run Festival

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Set in the heart of Melbourne city, where city lights flood through the windows and traffic hums below, Love/City is an artist-run festival that is a study of love in the city. It contemplates love in all its possible forms, be it romantic love, material love, or even fear as a derivative of love. Festival goers can order a drink from the serviced bar, eat some nibbles, and explore the picturesque building hosting an abundance of contemporary art that’s seeks to challenge, provoke and entertain. Bring a friend, a lover, or even someone you hate.

 

Twenty-seven artists (national and international) have collaborated and shared idea’s to create this one special night of performance, video, film, writing, projection, photography, installation, drawing, sound, and music, with happenings occurring throughout the night.

 

Curated by Arie Rain Glorie