The Barnes Foundation presents dancer/choreographer Gabrielle Revlock’s newest work, SEX TAPE on February 16, 2019, as part of their $10 Artist Bash series. SEX TAPE is Part 2 in a longer work entitled Manifesto, about power, care, and gender — where she recreates moments in her life but shift the focus by removing the man.
SEX TAPE uses as its source material video of the artist embracing a male lover. For the performance, this choreography will be performed by the artist and female friend and dancer, Michele Tantoco. “I wanted to complicate notions of what friendship can look and feel like, repatterning my own search for care.” Part 1 of Manifesto (performance date TBD) is an expansion of her 2016 solo, I replaced him with a Lamp.
Where Part 1 of Manifesto is critical, Part 2 is celebratory. “I had the realization that I was giving too much attention to things that were making me miserable, and missing an opportunity to give attention (ie. love) to the things (people) that were forces of good in my life.”
“On a recent visit to the National Portrait Gallery, I came upon a sculpture by Patricia Cronin of two women (her and her partner) embracing. It wasn’t passionate, it was tender. And while the work is titled Memorial to A Marriage and depicts two lesbians who would not have the right to marry for another 10 years, what I saw was a depiction of care that resonated with me and transcended the politics of sexuality and legality.”
“I’ve also been thinking about Kiss, a work by Tino Sehgal in which two dancers kiss and touch, appropriating images from Rodin’s The Kiss, Jeff Koons’ Made in Heaven, and other well-known works of art. I remembered Sehgal’s work a couple of days after I conceived of Sex Tape and paused, wondering if I was allowed to make a piece that might in many ways appear similar to the work of a famous artist. [pause] Yes. I have given myself permission to co-exist, to reference, to comment on, to challenge and I hope you, reader/viewer will also ponder how these works are in conversation with one another.”
In the midst of #metoo SEX TAPE physicalizes and brings into the public sphere an image of care and a positive representation of touch.
Gabrielle Revlock is a dance-maker working out of Philadelphia and New York. She is known for her work with the hoop and her “inventive,” “rambunctious,” and “mesmerizing” choreography. Presenters include American Dance Festival, JACK, Gibney Dance Center, FringeArts, Joyce SoHo, and Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts. Internationally she has performed in Japan, Netherlands, Singapore, Hungary, and Russia. Her work has been supported by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage, Independence Foundation, a LAB Fellowship through FringeArts, PA Council on the Arts, SCUBA National Touring Network for Dance, Puffin Foundation and the US Department of State. In 2011 she won a finalist prize at The A.W.A.R.D. Show. Choreographic residencies include Chez Bushwick, Elizabeth Streb’s GO!, LiftOff, Dance Omi, Culture Mill in cooperation with American Dance Festival and New York Live Arts’ Fresh Tracks. As a dancer, she has performed for Lucinda Childs, Leah Stein, Jumatatu Poe, Susan Rethorst, Christopher Williams, Bill Young, Jody Oberfelder, and is a company member with Jane Comfort and Company. Revlock has taught at The Fabric Workshop and Museum, American Dance Festival, Barnes Foundation, Abrons Arts Center, and The Philadelphia School among others. Interested in bridging experimentation and populism, she created the online video “So You Think You Can’t Understand Contemporary Dance?” a two-minute conversation with her favorite five-year-old. Gabrielle holds a BA in Art History from Vassar College.
SEX TAPE
Saturday, February 16, 8-11pm – Performance at approximately 9:30pm
Running Time: 1 hour
The Barnes Foundation is located at 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, PA 19130
CREDITS
Created by Gabrielle Revlock
Performed by Gabrielle Revlock and Michele Tantoco
TICKET INFORMATION
$10, includes access to the collection.
Ticket Link
