Hairoism 2011

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6-hour Durational performance and video

Performers: Oreet Ashery, Andrew Mitchelson and Owen Parry

Hairosim is a performance dedicated to four hairstyles of four male public figures. The first figure has the least hair and the last has the most, allowing Ashery to become hairier as the piece progresses. Ashery’s appearance transforms from one hour to the next, as two assistants apply hair kindly donated by the audience, and real hair bought in advance, to her shaved head. Each hour a video loop of each figure is playing in turn.

During the first hour the hair style of Moshe Dayan, Israel’s symbol of militancy, and famous for his eye patch will be created, then that of Abu Marzouk, a senior member of the Palestinian organization Hamas, moving on to Avigdor Lieberman, Israel’s current Minister of Foreign Affairs, and ending with Ringo Starr’s hairstyle, who according to the internet had the same hairstyle as Yassar Arafat.

In the fifth and last hour Ashery’s face and naked body is covered by hair as the assistants and the audience are invited to create a hairy creature.

Hairoism was first invited by Oriana Fox for Tate Modern event looking at feminist works from the 1970s at the women art library in Goldsmiths. Hairoism looked at Eleanor Antin’s The King, 1972.

Hairoism aaas performed at:  Trouble Festival, Brussels, 2011; 30 years of the National Review of Live Art, The Arches, Glasgow, 2010; City of Women Festival, Škuc Gallery, Ljubljana, 2010; Tate Modern, London, 2009

Links/Downloads:

Additional project information: Hairoism poster