The public is invited to participate in a performance by receiving an actual tattoo of a small black dot in the place of their choosing. 'Mnemonic' is a work that in effect creates or manufactures a community, a gang or a tribe of people; all willing to sacrifice a part of their individuality to be part of a larger group. Each individual may allocate their own meaning to a mark that permanently initiates them into a group - even if the collective identity is based on a made up symbol, a small fiction. If one's identity or home is a made-up construct or place, sometimes fiction can carry more weight than the facts - like a tattoo, fiction can remain with us for a lifetime. To date, I have tattooed a total of 180 participants at various arts institutions; the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, College Arts Association New York, and Boston School of the Museum of Fine Arts.
Mnemonic, (2011 - ongoing)
Tattoo performance
