MASSAGING MONUMENTS - MERMAID OF WARSAW
2019
performance
Warsaw, Poland
Performative action in public space. The artist takes the role of a masseur and performs a massage on the iconic monument - symbol of the city - The Mermaid of Warsaw (designed by Ludwik Nitschow in 1938). The aim of the project was a symbolic release of ideological tensions related the (armoured) figure as well as the apology of the paradigm of care, custody and tenderness.
Softening Patriarchy. Instead of war and guns, we need the letting go of forceful solutions and the loosening of (both physical and mental) tensions. The gesture of massage is a gesture of caring, an effort to improve well-being. Distance and humor can save us. Let's not tear down monuments - let's massage them!
In Poland, one can find many monuments commemorating historical figures and events in the form of figurative monuments, which are very often given the figure of a man (men) with some kind of weapon(s). History written by men likes such gestures, because it is based on war, exploitation and the infliction of suffering - holy trinity of the patriarchy.
This system is collapsing under the weight of its own lies and must become a thing of the past. Life is ecstatic, it is not suffering. How can we help in this transformative process? Before we can act collectively, we need an individual awakening, and that involves practicing the caring paradigm on a daily basis. We can practice a different approach to life and create a better reality based on dialogue, tolerance, care and concern for the well-being of ourselves and our communities.
