An ambitious piece with funding from The Arts Council awaiting confirmation.
Our "Normal" is quite bizarre when you think of it.
Your Manager
Your Managers Manager
Customers
Teachers
A first date
Your partner
Friends
Acquaintances
Strangers
A Friend you have fun with but aren't serious with
Best Friend
Mother, Father, Sister, Brother
Wider family
Yourself
These different people, if they were to ask:
"How are you?"
"Do you need help with anything?"
Will likely be given very different answers - coming from a slightly different "You"
Imagine being brought up through generations of parents, grandparents, great
grandparents and beyond, where answering honestly and freely was considered
normal. (Not compulsory but normal)
Indeed it would be impolite and rude to do anything else.
Imagine that honesty consistently met only with kindness.
Do not confuse honesty with lengthy sharing. Or indeed lengthy reciprocation.
Our replies could be brief. A 2 second brief but sincere "good luck" might be
the response.
The spirit of it will, however, be revolutionary.
A spirit not of "who the hell are they?" "But a sprit of "They're a person. Just
trying to be a person. Like me"
An ambitious series of works will be tied to the central idea:
Imagine the freedom of being able (not compelled to) be honest with
every single person you meet.
And know you will receive as the normal way of things, for that always to be met
- however briefly - with kindness and maybe even encouragement.
Or at the least a willingness to understand or have compassion for what is said.
Because that is considered the normal way to be - and It would be weird not to.
This is the world I will create through installations, a film, and written pieces from
myself and people like you. Underpinned by (anonymous) interviews with people
like you.
Interestingly in participating in these works, people like you will actually get to
make this visionary phenomenon a reality in a very small part of the world.
Yours.
Yours and others like you who would be interested in a glimpse into a zone of
freedom and connectedness. More freedom of fear of embarrassment, failure
and the harshness that occupies our current normality.