Ben-Hur
Performance on January 19th
2012
Continuing his investigation of dynamic movement, Pinder set stage in the intimate gallery space of G-Fine Art, Washington, DC. In Ben-Hur , the audience witnessed six performers uniformly exerting their physical prowess. Together they will attempt to find the ‘perfect pace’ on rowing apparatus. Working in unison the performers dealt with a variety of obstacles that distracted their effort to keep in-sync. Loosely inspired by the galley scene in the Hollywood epic, this crew worked themselves to
exhaustion in this time-based endurance piece. Accompanied by the stylization of DJ Tony Tech, this choreographed performance delved into an outward display of virility and struggle.
In this performance, the body is the ultimate vehicle to transcend in to a spiritual place. Ben-Hur establishes the undeniable connection between movement and emotion. Susan Leigh Foster writes in her book Choreographing Empathy, “ Kinesthesia as entwined with the emotions presumed that all humans share this same connection and that they we all are equally moved by the same depictions of human predicament or struggle.”
Stills: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10111213
The Escape Artist
2011-2012
ksaugfdhkhavnk
ksaugfdhkhavnk
ksaugfdhkhavnk
In this dramatic spectacle, novice escape artist Jefferson Pinder astounds and mesmerizes spectators by attempting to break free from body-binding restraints. There is no guarantee of success in his valiant effort. With an announcer and musical accompaniment to heighten the experience, his performance evokes the early 20th century street theatre of gentleman escape artists and traveling medicine shows.
hjgdsakvjdslk
The December 4th 2011 escape was performed at the exact time 80 years earlier which Matthew Williams was lynched in a straightjacket on the Wicomico County courthouse lawn.
Stills: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Juggernaut
2011
Focusing on physical exertion, the protagonist moves through space and time. Always moving forward and never stopping this kinetic portrait is fuelled by the potential of progress in an isolated environment. This video is pure meditation focused on an intense task. Shot in a historic one-lane tunnel outside of San Francisco, the setting provides an otherworldly texture for this minimal performance video.
Deserter Series
2011
Inspired by my 2010 Headlands residency, I created a series of photos exploring an account of a war deserter that headed west and lived with the Apache tribe. Focusing my narrative on desertion, the theme of this series is on finding heroics in the most complex circumstances.
Book of Light
2011
Sponsored by the University of Maryland Art Gallery, these series of video performances delve into the complex narrative of former Maryland Poet, Laureate Lucille Clifton’s Book of Light poems. Featuring young women from Silver Spring, Maryland our crew interpreted twelve poems that wrestled with abuse, family and community. This minimal work highlighted text and stillness to probe into the life and psyche of a sophisticated wordsmith.
