I performed Bitch for the Women's Caucus for Art Women & Environment show at Florissant-Valley Community College. From the reception on March 5, 2009 through the end of the month, I spent regular gallery hours in the gallery cramped in a large dog crate. This amounted to me being there roughly four to six hours a day, Monday - Saturday, minus spring break, for a total of over 70 hours, most of which I spent reading feminist literature and art discourse. I journaled my experiences and reactions on my blog here. Artist's Statement:
There is an old saying that one cannot know what it is like to be another until having walked a mile in his/her shoes. I intend to use this piece as a means of personally experiencing the world through the eyes of another in order to gain a better understanding of what puppy mill dogs are forced to endure, with breeding dogs often spending their entire lives in small wire cages until they are killed for having outlived their usefulness. This act will also draw viewers' attention to the plight of these animals. It is easier to project ourselves into situations that have a human component because we feel closer to the subject. Many people make strong distinctions between people and animals, with the animals represented in their mind's eye as "other." This response can cause us to be less aware of the animals' plight, if for no other reason than because we are less able to project ourselves into the situation that the animals are forced to endure because we perceive of the animals as being different than ourselves. This helps to foster both neglect and apathy because the animals cannot speak for themselves. People have justified a lot of cruelty by convincing themselves that, because something is not "human" and may not experience pain in quite the same manner, it is okay to treat it differently, to see it first and foremost as a commodity than as a living being deserving our respect. Simultaneously, this piece provides a means of commentary on the treatment of women. Historically many women have been trapped into cycles wherein they had little or no control over their own lives and bodies, forced into motherhood while becoming the property of their husbands, and many women still find themselves in this position in other countries. Here and now, powerful, strong-willed women are derogatorily referred to as bitches (or as mother dogs). Women can be trapped by this cycle as well, either avoiding being labeled as bitches at all costs or by negatively coming to see themselves as bitches for traits that would be praised in their male counterparts. Thus this relates to the theme "Women and Environment" while exploring what puppy mill dogs endure. By placing myself in the dog crate for an extended period of time, I hope to encourage people to project themselves into that crate, so that they may better understand just what the puppy mill dogs are forced to endure day in and day out and to get them thinking more about derogatory terms and acts. Hopefully by projecting themselves into that situation, viewers will be made more aware, become more sensitive and will be more likely to incite change, both in regards to their treatment of animals and of women.