Hold On, 2022, performance, 30 min

Concept and Choreography - Rachel Monosov 

Performer -  Claudia Veronesi

The sculptural and performative work titled Hold On revolves around acts of holding in relation to care and the fragility of the moment. My minimalist approach shifts the focus to that which is invisible, but can destroy or empower.

The ancient Greek philosopher Anaximenes believed air is the eternal original substance from which the physical universe was formed. He used scientific reasoning to observe that living things needed to breathe air in order to survive. Anaximenes argued that air must then be the original source of life and all physical things: “Just as our soul, being air, holds us together, so do breath and air encompass the whole world.” -Anaximenes. This implies that the body cannot be directed without a soul. We must clench into air to prevent external dark forces from affecting our bodies.

Each sculpture presents with it instructions of how it is activated with a breath. I focus on how one can act with care in opposition to violence through the relationship between the action of holding and breathing. Nevertheless, the word hold could stand for forced stillness, preventing an action, or holding a breath. Through this juxtaposition, a question arises: Could taking care put one in control and give him or her power? This ambivalent thought manifests in the choreography of the performer’s actions as she interacts with each sculpture.

Don’t let careless hands reach out to destroy, 2022, Bronze, Plastic, water and dye, 200 × 60 cm

Instructions: Don't let careless hands reach out to destroy
Pour a drop of water into the tube while it stands on the bronze legs
Act I:
Sit on the floor facing the open end of the sculpture where the drop of water entered.
Blow into the tube to move the water deeper into the sculpture. Meditate on the
sound created from your pushing into the tube.
Allow the repetition of this act to anchor you into the present moment.
Act II:
Lift the tube carefully with both hands making sure the water does not spill out. Begin
walking with the tube, shifting its balance so that the water moves up and down the sculpture.
Take care of this water; don't let it drop.

Collective effort, 2022,Bronze, aluminum, latex, air

Instructions: Collective effort
Care for the object by inflating and sustaining the balloon with your breath.
When filling the balloon with air, think of all you want to release from your body.
Carefully place the balloon into the brass hands and they will hold you burden.

Holding onto gravity, 2022, 2-part sculpture: walnut wood, feather, Bronze, 46 × 10 cm

Instructions: Holding on to gravity
Instal the sculpture in a corner at your eye level. Set the tips of the cones to almost touch.
Place the feather is in between them..
Act I, duration 2 min:
Stand in the corner, inside the sculpture with the cones blocking your vision.
In this place, close your eyes, pay attention to your breath… slow it down.
Forget your surroundings.
Act II, duration 2 min:
Step out from behind the sculpture so that you are now facing it.
Gently remove the feather and hold it in your palm .
Blow the feather from your hand and continue blowing it, using your breath to prevent
it from falling to the ground.