james st findlay

The Alpine Sisters Of Fury And Hate: III

(This episode was split into three acts)

Act I: Corporeal Matrix

A new method is being tested by the couple. On a platform their sits a bust of a nondescript female figure. The man, clad in a blue velvet robe, explains that this bust is an accurate depiction of the couple’s mutual vision of what they would like their eventual child to look like. Keen to prove that a child can be conceived through methods other than intercourse, the couple set about preparing the scene. Sweet potatoes are cleaved into chunks and handed out to the guests. They are urged to hold the slices to their breasts or to their wombs in order to absorb the natural energies. The steroid like compounds in sweet potatoes are very easily converted into sex hormones which can in turn aid ovulation and increase the likelihood of a healthy birth. The couple slide through the crowds, preparing everyone for the ritual.

Act II: The Perfect Daughter

The couple encircle the statue of their ideal child, brushing it with daffodils and whispering encouragements. They sing to the bust, urging it to manifest itself in the body of the woman, to unfurl like a fleshy red fern inside her womb. They kiss, caress and compliment to an extent that they feel is adequate. A sudden warmth is felt, the woman clutches her womb. perfect daughter swim in my waters manifest yourself inside the body of my wife and give us your perfect life

Act III: She Is The Lagoon

A sonogram reveals that the woman is full of fresh water, and we watch as a seed plunges into her body. The ritual has been a success, and to the backdrop of her crystalline beauty she sings a song of hope. She is the perfect generational mother, and she invites one and all to dance and sing inside her.

Performance at Banshee Labyrinth, April 2016

Photography by Ben Shmulevitch