| Ceci N'est Pas Un Viol | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Opening scene of the eight-minute video | |
| Artist | Emma Sulkowicz |
| Year | Released 3 June 2015 |
| Type | Performance art, participatory art |
| Subject | Sexual consent, campus sexual assault, social media |
| Location | Columbia University, New York City |
| Preceded by | Mattress Performance (Carry That Weight) (2014–2015) |
Ceci N'est Pas Un Viol ("This is not a rape") is a work of performance art by American artist Emma Sulkowicz.[1][2][3] Released on 3 June 2015, the work consists of a website hosting an eight-minute video, introductory text and an open comments section.[4] The video shows Sulkowicz having sex with an anonymous actor in a dorm room at Columbia University in New York City. It was directed by artist Ted Lawson in early 2015, while Sulkowicz was in the final year of a visual-arts degree at Columbia.[5]
The film illustrates the shift between consensual and non-consensual sex.[6][7] Named after "Ceci n'est pas une pipe" from René Magritte's The Treachery of Images,[8] the scene shows Sulkowicz and the actor engaging in what begins as a consensual sexual encounter and ends with what appears to be non-consensual anal sex.[5] (The text notes that the sex was consensual and only appears to be rape.)[9]
The online response in the comments to the video is a central part of the work, described as an example of participatory art.[4] Sulkowicz wanted to know "what the public does with [the video], which begins with the way they deal with it from the moment it's disseminated."[10] Shortly after it appeared, the video was taken offline by a denial-of-service attack.[11] By 9 June 2015, there were 2,700 comments on the site, most of them negative or ridiculing.[4][12] Sulkowicz said she[a] strongly believed in the video's importance, but that making it had been a "traumatizing" experience.[11]
- ^ Hernan, Barbara (5 June 2015). "Emma Sulkowicz Creates Sex Video As Performance Art, 'Ceci N'est Pas Un Viol'". International Business Times. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
- ^ Gambino, Lauren (5 June 2015). "Columbia graduate who carried mattress releases video depicting 'rape'". The Guardian.
- ^ Friedman, Megan (5 June 2015). "Emma Sulkowicz on Her New Project: 'Please, Don't Participate in My Rape'". Elle.
- ^ a b c Rubin, Hannah (9 June 2015). "This Is Not About Emma Sulkowicz's Rape — It Is About You". The Forward.
- ^ a b Munro, Cait (4 June 2015). "Emma Sulkowicz Breaks New Ground With Troubling Video Performance". Artnet.
- ^ Frank, Priscilla (5 June 2015). "'Mattress Performance' Artist Emma Sulkowicz's Newest Work Is A Video Of Violent Sex". The Huffington Post.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Armus5June2015was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Alter, Charlotte (June 5, 2015). "Student Who Carried Mattress in Rape Protest Unveils New Project". Time.
- ^ Schwiegershausen, Erica (June 5, 2015). "Emma Sulkowicz Made a Film Addressing Rape". New York.
- ^ Munro, Cait (4 June 2015). "Emma Sulkowicz Speaks Out About Her New Video Performance". ArtNet.
- ^ a b Gambino, Lauren (9 June 2015). "Emma Sulkowicz's This Is Not A Rape site taken down by cyberattack". The Guardian.
- ^ Seltzer, Sarah (9 June 2015). "Vile Comments Are the Most Important Part of Emma Sulkowicz's Graphic New Video". Flavorwire.
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