Before and After Parade 2018 for Tail of the Pup by Bada Song |
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Concept
For my previous video, SEND-IT II (2017), I wanted to use an image, found online, of North Korean women soldiers marching. But I soon realised that it was too well known and the price to use it legally was too high for me, so I edited it out.
But I was still interested in the image, and so, I set out to try and recreate the image for myself. This led to the short video piece I titled Parade (Feb. 2018). When I was invited to perform for APT LIVE 2018, in Deptford, London, I took this video as the starting point for my performance, which I again titled Parade (Sep. 2018). Here, for Tail of the Pup I have chosen to present details of the costume that I evolved through the making of these pieces. As such, rather than Parade itself, this piece shows both preparations (before) and archiving (after), thereby providing Tail of the Pup with something unexpected and other to my usual work, something apparently peripheral, but which I regard as equally important and interesting. |
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Hat An old Russian-style winter hat embellished with bits and pieces that look like a badge or insignia.
Coat An old winter coat, shortened so that, as with the women soldiers, marching would flash my legs. On the back of the hood, I add more parodic badges, made form scraps, so that the ‘uniform’ also worked when viewed from the back.
Boots The starting point for the outfit, big, militaristic boots found in East Street Sunday Market, London SE15.
Tights Flesh-coloured thick tights looking like those worn by the women soldiers. Found in East Street Market. These, again, give the impression of ‘parading’ flesh when in fact everything is covered.
Skirt
Speaker / Bag |
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Gloves Made in China ‘shower gloves’ bought for £1 in a local Pound Shop. They have the right ‘hi-tec’ look, and a textured grip. I stitched bands of black material on them to integrate them with the rest of the costume and defamiliarise them.
Belts A wide, brown, leather belt bought in a local charity shop for £ 2.50. Plus a wide black belt made from elastic material bought in a Brixton haberdashery. Then decorated with flattened champagne bottle wires found in the street.
Badges Parodic, like the rest of the outfit and the performed actions, the badges are made from scraps and throwaways found in the gutter and on the pavement during a shopping trip. I also used one special pin, from my own traditional style Korean wedding dress.
Tablet Cost £40 plus some old IT equipment I traded. The tablet played a loop of the video of the earlier ‘Parade (Feb, 2018) piece. I gripped the tablet and fixed my gaze on it (and my own reflection) throughout the performance. |
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Performance The performance was largely determined by emulating the video on the tablet, in which I march very slowly. The pace of the music and the video, and the dimensions of the APT site also defined it. Marching one very slow circuit of the site took exactly 20 minutes. |
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Further info: http://badasong.com/index.php/parade-performance/ |
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