On Thursday, October 9, 2003, at 10:02 AM, Josh Ronsen wrote:
In December, the Austin New Music Co-Op will present an evening of
performances using stones and rocks. Pieces by John Gibson, Christian
Wolff, Pauline Oliveros and NMC members will be performed. Outside the
performance space, there will be a number of installations using
rocks. I am thinking about doing an installation/performance (I will
also be performing in the ensemble). My idea is to kneel down by a
pile of stones and a sign that reads let he who is without sin cast
the first stone.
This is a simple idea (although rich in implications), and I am sure
it has been done before. But who? When? Where?
For their project, a group of conceptual art students at Cornell in
Ithaca, NY, 1974, rented a school bus and took students and faculty up
to a quarry where we had a performance play. It started with stoning
an outcast. The outcast went into a pit and everyone threw what they
could find. Only problem was people got really into it, not like in the
rehearsal. I was the outcast getting stoned and remember getting
really scared and adrenaline rushing. That stopped and we scrambled up
a cliff. It was a little like the Magical Mystery Tour and there
everyone was at the top of the cliff. Something drew me to the edge and
I recall thinking how easy it would be to just jump -- as part of the
performance! Luckily something drew me back more and I didn't. So we
all scrambled down again, sat in an oval and smoked a real peace pipe.
There was much more to this, but as the outcast (self-appointed?) I
not entirely cognizant of the script though there was also audio and I
still have a recording somewhere.
Not as simple as a rock pile and glass wall, but related.
