I thought it might be useful to add this, for the record. Here is the blurb I wrote for the exhibition:-
Artist’s Name: Lorna Ruskin
Title of work: “Self Portrait: Leopard (Dreams are Made of This)” 2013
Type of artwork: Performance
For the exhibition “If Not Here, Where?” I present a performance-based self-portrait. Dressed in a leopard onesie, I lounge in a tree, pondering my current life situation and waiting for the impulse to move. Surveying my life so far – the choices I have made – I wonder what happened to my dreams, to the life I thought I would have, and the person I thought I would be… Am I happy with who I am? Can I change..?
I am not from around here.
How is it – when I used to imagine myself living a life in Africa – that I am still here, living my life in Manchester, of all places? Do I belong here? Do I fit in? Is this my native land, my natural environment? Is this where I want to be?
And if I dream of being elsewhere, is that a dream I really want to make real, or do I just like dreaming…?
If not here, where would you be?
I love your header, Lorna – beautiful.
Ah, so oft we are here rather be there. I’d love to see your leopard onesie 🙂 Sounds interesting, this work. I’m not sure I’d rather be elsewhere, unless the elsewhere was a beach in the sun, ah so fresh so free. Up a tree isn’t bad either though 🙂
Hello again and thank you. You can see pictures of me in the tree if you look at the gallery titled If Not Here Where posted a while ago.
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