Homage to Joseph
Homage to Joseph Beuys | 2002 | Performance at a dry lake bed in Nevada
My performance, Homage to Joseph, was a parody to the artist, Joseph Beuys. Homage to Joseph was performed at a dry lake bed in the Nevada desert.
Joseph Beuys’ performance, I Like America and America Like Me, took place in 1974 at the West Broadway’s Rene Block Gallery. His performance was about spending time in a large cage with a wild coyote. While in the cage, Joseph wrapped himself entirely in felt. He then spent the next three days building a relationship with this wild coyote. The meaning behind Beuys’ performance was the exploration of mythologies of America and its untamed spirit. It was also about the Native American and their sacred bond to animals.
In Homage to Joseph, the U.F.O. represents mythology of today. It is viewed as a renewed version of the continued spirit of the American West. I wanted to create a juxtaposition between urban city vs. remote desert; past vs. future; known vs. unknown; and animal vs. machine.
