- 29 Mar 2021 10pm UTC
- dur 4min
John G. Boehme will revisit “Crossover- International Network Art Exhibition Text from The curator Cai Qing 2020>2021 ©John G. Boehme At the New Year’s Eve event of the “Crossover” International Performance Art Festival, Canadian performance artist John G. Boehme appeared very calmly. He wore a black face mask stared at the audience (camera), like a still life object in front of the screen, then he began to swallow the mask. We saw the mask moving. He sucked and bit the black mask hard to make it smaller and smaller. He struggled hard and continued to bite. He had almost swallowed the entire mask and his face was deformed and distorted. The mask occupied his mouth and filled the breathing space. His face was flushed. He was still chewing fiercely. His face was swollen and discolored. This situation was suffocating. I even worried that he would vomit any second. Gradually, the black mask was pulled to the point of becoming a black line on his mouth, but he couldn’t move it anymore. It was even more difficult. Just like he was caught by a wire in his throat, as if he had reached the critical point of life and death. Struggling to break through with forgiveness, and finally broke the connection that was holding the mast to his right ear. He continued to chase it, and finally swallowed the entire black mask in his mouth. He stared at the front, facing us like nothing happens and returned to peace. The work is concise and powerful, catching the soul, and shocking!”
BIO: John G. Boehme identifies as a cisgender white male of German and Scottish heritage currently living in Victoria, BC Canada the Lekwungen speaking homeland of the Esquimalt, Songhees peoples. His early art practice included painting, sculpture, performance video and digital technology, installation and photography. Boehme describes recent work as “trans-disciplinary” often employing performance, video, audio and objects in a number pieces simultaneously, Boehme is not constrained to any particular creative mode and therefore utilizes integrated approaches to realize the work. John continues to have exhibitions, screenings and participate in festivals across Canada, Australia, the Americas, United Kingdom, Europe and China. John is and Artist and Educator, teaching Performance Art, Ceramics and Sculpture as a continuing faculty of the Visual Arts Department at Camosun College. ARTIST’S WEBSITE