SCOOPHOLIC TESTS FOR AN EYE HISTORY

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Work in process (2021/2022)

Conception of Janaina Leite

Collaboration by: André Medeiros Martins, Lara Duarte, Lillah Halla, Mateus Capelo and Anita Saltiel (Pixie / Nittie)

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Synopsis

In Stabat Mater, Janaina began to explore the universe of pornography by proposing and making an explicit sex scene with one of the main porn actors in Brazil, as one of the triggers to discuss motherhood, sexuality, gender, desire and violence, in the show that has his real mother on the scene.

In this new proposal, starting from the famous novel “History of the eye” by Georges Bataille, Janaina now looks at a history of the gaze taking the pornographic image as its motto. In addition to the themes that can be discussed through pornography, such as sexuality, eroticism and gender representations, the provocations that pornography brings to aesthetics by collapsing dichotomous pairs such as art / non-art, simulated sex / real sex, performance / performance, interest aesthetics / lascivious interest, contemplation / masturbatory consumption, fiction / document, metaphoricity / literalness.

The first phase of the project consists of three actions or "Scopophilic Essays", entirely virtual and audiovisual, "without risk of contagion", and focuses on "scopophilia", or the place of the "eye" in erotic enjoyment, bringing to the project experiences people who are dealing with pornography in their zone of instability and risk.

The second phase comprises the process of rehearsing and assembling the unprecedented theatrical show "History of the eye - a porn-noir fairy tale" that will adopt the very structure of "History of the Eye" which is divided into "fable" and "reminiscences".

Based on a casting process that involves amateurs and professionals of pornography, we will develop in the rehearsal room the fable of Bataille's novel in friction with the scopophilic experiences of the performers who will be part of the show. In addition to the theory about image and ecstasy that we are interested in investigating, we have a first north for the construction of our porn-noir fairy tale, between the vulgar and the sublime, the low and the cosmic, the vulgar and the abyssal.