all together now

six months in six minutes? who said it couldn't be done?
this wasn't quite what I'd planned to do with these photos (as you'll see) but slideshows are so last year...

the end

my flight home had technical problems and so I was forced to stay in LA for 24 hours.
without a spare pair of knickers I was, understandably, a bit upset. but now I think it's a god-send.

this trip was unexpected. I often feel that the art I desire and make doesn't quite fit in the australian dance scene. so while I was desperate to go to paris, it wasn't something I was counting on. the irony of me getting something at the right time hasn’t gone unnoticed.

this trip to paris has been life changing. everyone goes through a time when things are imperceptibly wrong and we (australians) have so little to complain about that sometimes we just keep pushing.

coming back through the US and being forced to stay longer in a lonely city has allowed me some time to reflect on this trip. there are artists and discussions that have changed me. paris has changed me. new and old friends have changed me. talking each day with you has changed me. and I’m hoping to find that those changes stay with me.

I want to thank the australia council for keeping this strange studio and this rare open time for artists. It’s very brave. and quite spectacular. paris is not really a city for making contemporary art and so the space becomes a city of thinking and experiencing.

if you can't click on the above video, I've decided to make a short film about paris with some of the left over photos I took. I'll send it through as soon as I can.

thank you for opening your hearts to me. you can never know how much safer I feel and how the ground beneath me feels like it might be solid again.

love clare x

day 165

last day in the US, so I thought I'd meet some performance artists to see what was happening here in the portland underground. I went to a funky local coffee shop where lee kyle (left) and kaj-anne pepper were working, hanging out and talking about art.

lee currently has a one man show where he covers himself in blood while singing show tunes and burning the american flag. he showed us some pictures of a recent performance where he added a interesting twist (literally) where he removed all of his clothes and then inserted an oscar up his rectum.
funny thing is he seemed super nice over coffee!

last day of my adventure tomorrow. not sure what I'll find in transit but I've adored looking for things to share with you...

day 164

after lots of art today, two pageantry choreographers (think marching band / dance team), took me to the gorgeous columbia river gorge. my american dreams came true when a stretch-hummer (above) arrived and spewed out a gaggle of 70+ year olds with champagne, attitude and walking sticks to see the view.

after the nature, we had cocktails at a strange gay 'cheers' bar (where the waitors wore towels and nothing else) to numb the memory of the portuguese dance where the solo performer 'inhabited' a paper bag for 30 minutes. the festival is super fun...

day 163

tricycle on the corner of martin luther king and freemont...

today was a jérôme bel day: firstly an artist talk and then a performance - his duet work 'Pichet Klunchun and Myself'.

so much to say - I was in paris for five months and I had to come to portland to hear and see this french choreographer reveal himself. stunning work. stunning words. it was quite liberating and I'll come back tomorrow to talk more.

day 162

as we were driving next to her, ophelia told us that she got this gorgeous bike for her 8th birthday. she was on her way to open her downtown boutique where she specialises in sunglasses for every occasion...

day 161

I'm in portland for the TBA Festival and it seems very different from houtson. of course, everything is so different from paris that I'm not sure how to interact with it.

I miss places that are old: places where age isn't noticed.

but here, it's new. super new, like us - we are essentially new. even with very old cultures that influence us, our architecture and cities, they are new, and it's apparent everywhere from the building materials, to the width of the streets...

day 160

reflecting in the reflections of downtown houston...

day 159

I spent the day at Diverseworks, a multi-discipline arts space in houston where I will be working next year. this place feels right: like art is meant to be made here. it's housed in a re-claimed warehouse with a series of commissioned art works hanging outside. this work 'mickey' was made by joyce pensato...


I'm not sure I will have time to really look at this city properly, but my first impressions are that although paris is now like a beloved old coat, houston is so shiny and new that it reminds me of australia: empty spaces, strips of reflective buildings, large concrete roads and no one on the streets...

day 158

a day transiting from an old familiar city to a new alien one...

day 157

regret nothing..........

"no, I don't regret anything. neither bad or good.".....

katrin's new work based on the edith piaf song seemed pretty appropriate for 5 months of introspection, discovery and revelations.... thank you for joining me - you have been delightful... x

(if I can, next stop: shopping malls in houston)

day 156

packing, cleaning, storing, giving away, more packing, moving, cleaning again, re-distributing, traveling.

last day at cité so we visited some of our fellow artists to say goodbye. this is katherine's (from australia) new work that is being drafted on NAB posters brought from australia. some art and a nice cup of tea makes everything better...