Aliens In New York 

2012

Benjamin Sebastian + Bean + Poppy Jackson + Martin O’Brien

(original copy from Labour)
“Alien(s) In New York : A 3-Day Mini Festival

Guest Curators, Bean & Benjamin Sebastian of ]performance s p a c e [ - London, will launch the 2012 Fall program of Grace Exhibition Space with a three day performance event taking place across the 7th(Fri.), 8th(Sat.) & 9th(Sun.) of September. This three day mini performance festival; Alien(s) in New York, will platform some of the most dynamic contemporary time-based and performance art practitioners from around the world.

Confirmed artists included: Bean (UK), Benjamin Sebastian (UK/AUS), Martin O’Brien (UK), Poppy Jackson (UK/IRE), & Jordan Wayne Long (USA). The event will platform both durational performance practice and Group Action work from invited artists; interrogating time, space & the body through contemporary visual performance.

Friday September 7th: 8pm-11pm - Group Action - Bean, Poppy Jackson and Benjamin Sebastian

Saturday September 8th: 6pm-11pm - Durational Performances by: Jordan Wayne Long, Benjamin Sebastian & Poppy Jackson

Sunday September 9th: 12pm onward - Showcasing durational work by Martin O'Brien and Bean.”

Poppy Jackson - WIN as part of Aliens in New York at Grace Exhibition Space. 2012.
Photographer credit pending.

“As I entered, I was forced to move through a narrow passage, between wall and counter. I instantly felt controlled and manipulated. The layout of the room channeled me towards you – naked, cornered, inverted. Supporting your body weight through your neck and shoulders, your arms flowing out across the floor. You looked to have been thrown there. Your thighs where I expected to view your shoulders, feet in place of head. Legs splayed wide apart, a tatty homemade sign was inserted into your vagina (it read WIN – a digital copy taken from documentation of the target you had worn on your chest). In one hand you held a small blade and in the other, a handful of gold leaf, spilling, floating out with air currents in the room....”