Dance of the Cockatrice, live performance
City Art Rooms, Auckland

Dance of the Cockatrice, references both Warhol (camo paintings) and Yves Klein (painted body as performance), but deals with fluctuating identities and the desire of the individual to blend into society. It's a personal allegory of a hybrid identity living in a global village and constantly having to adapt and renegotiate their environment like a chameleon. The cockatrice is a mythical figure, which is also a hybrid (half serpent/rooster), which could turn things to stone with its gaze.

The photographic images depict myself in performative tableaus. As the performance goes on, my artificial skin tears away to reveal natural flesh. The photographs were the basis of a live performance in the gallery, where a strong gaze was maintained between the visitors and myself.