afterima THE JOURNAL OF MEDIA ARTS AND CULTURAL CRITICISM ESSAYS & FEATURES, ‘The Chainlewter Tapes Mary Billyou Visualizing Disposability: Photographing Neoliberal Conilict in the United States lrinde Peters 6 Artworld Analog: A Conversation with Anne Dora Taylor Dafoe 2 Modeling the Psyche: Nene Humphrey's Multisensory Enactment of Empathetic Entanglement ist Alby 5 PORTFOLIO. Congratulations and Celebrations Ellen Lesprance ise ower spread Raw Bu 201) by Ares Gnu outeyth stat and Oe ee shety EDITOR Kaen vnMeecen ASSOCATEEDTR 2 Somer SUBSCRIPTION |S PROMOTIONS MANAGER bec Cran EDTORLAL INTERN Nel! Hung Soc PHOTO EDITOR esc Jaston PRT DESRAERS renters Bosca Hosp WEBMANAGERSiso ess EXHIBITION REVIEWS 21 Angela Grauerholz: Ferins écrans Regarder i Glessng 2 Person of the Growd: The Contemporary Art of Flinerie Kathy Kramer 25 José Macas de Carvalho: Archive and Democracy K. Johnson Bowles 26 Last Standing: Linn Underhill ‘sa Chase BOOK REVIEW 28 Laura U. Marks's Hanan al-Ginema: Affections for the Moving Image Jay Morphy ETC, 30 Media Noted and Received Contributors: Charles McKinney, Matthew Dwight More, Rebecca Rafferty Atesinoge provide fru forthe deacon and ents photography,ESSAY bom iy Dulcie. Clarkson - 1S!00 414 RIDER," 3 3 é a > Odd Gicl Our - 1 Lady THE CHAINLETTER TAPES he sloin our Front door rattled and my sister received ver her shoulder Quickly she folded ip ancl putt away, dismissing it “Ms just a chain eter: a letter I read it, lok concerned -itooked important IWlisted a number of handvriten signatures, inching some of her fiends twas the year of the Bientennia omy eh ‘ye itloked ike aversion ofthe United States Constinution, Irad, “IE the pattern is noe broken, there is no way it can not work, Be sure to opy this etter entre: OMIT NONE OF TT?" The envelope was addres to my sister, but i siggested the nkncwn power ef an organized group. Filled with \aague possibilty of change its lang ihre me. Like a stone dropped ino a pook val throats, but alo the was strange and forebading efloce seemed 10 circle azound our house in ever-wideaing echoes: is promise could ‘only be alld ifthe rules were followed, Tt iif she w gland dit correctly. Twas not yet ten ye Of this kind of magical thinking appealed dan the dive 2 | aflerimage Years te, long after my sister had lef for good, remember Bll placing headphones on my ears during study hall I fle ike T was under a waterfall it was the Minutemen. Their sound signaled something beyond my onde; isolated, and circumscribed world Ponkas sound, an idea, style a band of outsider helped focus cha i inner ie ited its brainy ey, nicate ap ealypie vision, In 1992, I crash-landed in Washington, DG; 1 was in feel Trained in assiduous selepresentation, my life wasubout surviving, ‘which meant hicing and mufling my emotions. But what had been my fal front finally began falling apart. Too muicy had happened to me for my bodys surface to contain, and I wasspinning out of control, With no wore, no context, and no 6 nosh t0 ‘express my experience, Lhad no wa of fndin ate path I desperately needed somethin which T could hal like a life preserves In August, a if following a trail of breaderum, I stended the Riot Grr! Convention, 1 went to Dupont Circle to see the fee VHS Caen (2 Tina Seanaperformaness Juliana Lueeking, the spoken-word artist, opened the ‘In drag she presente a sophisticated man of the world, wearing a smoking jcke, slippers and smoking a pipe. He made me sie reminding ne of several familiar male figures combined: my fahes, hugh Hlfnes and Me Howell rom Giligans Bland. Accompanying, him was a wl lanky bassist with long seraggly hair named Bernie, alo in drag as a Playboy bunny. In fhiet stockings, her bry lege looked gandly. Their fst story was about spray-painting the word “PLU-C-K"—sowly Jeter leer—on a wallin capital leners. Mier they performed, the Shrieking Violets played, and then Cheesecake, Around me wis a crowd of people, mostly young women, On the edges of the group were curious paserby, mostly men, uncomprehending. Looking like camp counselors, onganizers held clipboards and had tied their T-shirts underneath their breasts (On their sormachs they had scrawled “RAPE” and “SLUT” in Dock marker: was invited to goto a panty the next afternoon atthe Positive Toree Flows. ‘Taking the metso to the Clarendon stop, I walked the rest of the way. The girls were rowdy, and there were no boys Thad neveresperienced an environment lke this before, Laughing jn the doonway, Mary looked like a gangsta rapper, shoving her hhand in her jeans and grabbing her crotch, For ive bucks, I got a Shrinky Dinks necklace that said “Riot Grrrl DC.” I wore the chain arourd my neck. -Afer that. went to meetings, which were closed io bays, Huddle in our hard'won territory, we were ike Darla and her frends from The Lite Rascals (1922-48) with a sign on the door, askew No Boxe Allee myortantly, dis space gave us ine to speak an be heard ‘Unknowingy, [found elf psiejpatng in “the creation of safe hhavens for females to gather and express [ourselves in personal, pale, sn weal ways At the time, U did actally speak dh’ knoe how a yes T merely began to beathe: Different fom eatier iterations of feminism, Riot Geel explicitly imtended team what tmeant the gia Siting onthe Moor ace tovfice meetngs, most of ws had grown up to aviey to know wat that meant. Mest of us, ike myself, el led chikdboe. On those quiet. afernoons in Adingon, healing began and fare plans took place Sometimes ene of us would arive, having something urgent 10 elk about dat made te ouside threat eal again. Orme we just aed bout what interesed us, what bothered us ad wat we wanted od, We planted fundraisers for harered women’s shor in which all gil bands played: Lois, Slant Six, and Bikini Kill, We organized art shows We say painted dressed up and hal sleepovers. We esponded ta faction of the heartfiled leters pouting into the Riot Geet PO. Bax. We debated working in strip clubs, talked about the social status and healthcare of sex workers We dncusesl the conservative feminist dialogues of Catherine McKinnon al Andrea Dworkin, We ‘wanted to be united in our psions, hut we were becoming many One organized activity was slipping DIY Miers into fashion magazines und in grocery checkout ines and in shops. Tangeted asst for direct communication with women and gis outside our group, we sw chs messaging as a potentially berating activity in Which our handmade material would become the rupturing contiet the glossy images never seemed to convey: Ons actions st out 10 48 sabotage the rational production of ideologies we perceived as harmful es. We were sick of being condescendled to ara not having ‘our issues addressed by the media we consumed, Que misives hsled a gendered consumer identi “both ‘overproduced and overlooked by the media. ary’ ther appropriated a familiar advertisement of a docile, bikini-clad gil, Which sel in bold lewering, “Get dhe look that beys noice,” an ‘went on to sell a weight-loss program. Modiication eame about Uhrough a Sharpie’s rant railing against anorexia, the everyday ‘objectification of girs’ bodies, and the furthering «repressive mesages about bady sive and “attractiveness.” Another Mice Adidessed a predator, calling hmm out: T just wanted to et you kone that Lam not going to “smile fact dumb hide my bedy “pretend ‘Hie *e sent for yous about rape in our society, detailed the emotional ffs of alu * Others relayed statistical information shaming, and promoted erying in public, Disconnected fom our mothers, it scemed to us as if the Women's Liberation Movement had never occurred, At least, we never experienced the jubilanee that liberation suggess, We never witnessed anybody burning bras, making demands, or had the expectation of being paid equal wages. Further, we didn't define ourselves as posiivist heroes leading the world to a progresive fiature. We never expected co be granted access to representative government, We weren't interested in gaining. petmission; we circummavigatedit To us, discretion was no longeea viable response tothe ily tragedy of consent and the reality of rape ‘Understanding that our bodies weee contested territo? not just jn our parents’ houses but also on Capitol Hill, we beieved i the anarchist asertion of antonomy and selEdetermination, Labels ad categories were suspect, as were the paternal concerns of whether + not pornographic imagery wat a positive or negati ‘upon innocent minds, We knew all too well that cersorship and the morals, patriarchal leadership it supports can easly create ‘environments in which experience becomes unspeabable. When hae crimes and hate speceh gp unrecogoized, communication shuts down. Sexual identity, if denied, plays ive? out in emtraiciory ways, on he punk stage, in thestrip bar, on the stoce and elseshere. Hardcore, the DC style, combines “jazz-like precision with ruck showmanship."' Oppositional music, punks terrain, i shock tnd sensekssness, responding to an inner disconnect with an overwhelming sensational reality. Good pesformers can convey and lead audiences to ered sates of intense physical ane esnotional Fighting — ‘experience, Dancing, if collective, can become more lik iF sol, itis more like an epileptic fi Straight edge, another hallmark of DC punk, developed as an auempt at sel-care and sustainable social telaions within a marginal ‘extence. (The DC punk scene was no re frm predators) Like dhe two X's marke on che backs of ands of underage kis a shows, straightedge describes not only someone underage (e,= person who could not legally be served alcohol), but i also a sigh of solidarity ‘wth youth ina word in which adults are missing or oe of contro [As mainstream society’ strident "No" repeats through electronic feedback, the posibilry of another world appears: “Yes” A disinetly negative subjet position turns dhrough consciousness, experience, ateimage | 3Cheesecake, Riot Grirl Convention, Dupont Circle, Washington, DC (1993) by Mary Billyou and selfdefinition imo one of relevant and valuable presciene, Under these conditions, imitations a © viewed as help, ukimately revealing whats important Ve found expression in our voices, sided by microphones and ampli. At shows, performers would relate stories of harasenent while ey had been on tour Mia Zapata dhe lead singer of the Gis, had recently been sexually asst and naurered ina parking le aie her ban! had performed. Our avekward, innocent githoods, delayed and urnatural, were displayed in performances of anger. This way we "eased suppres traumas fom rape cate ke stcam fioma take 8 space ive shows are intense and exhilarating experiences. The dlstineons between listeners and pesformers ean become blutred, sudince, aging this notoriously macho arena, sometimes rot ges would shouting and challenging those they faced, Inside, other grits were protected able to be present front and center. In this situation, space-making took place ia public, not behind closed dots. A series of orchestrated group actions, these pero scene. The action drew attention to the soene's interior complet. {e also 2ointed to its structural similarity to the dominant outside world. What remained was the problem of difference and of being Iulkiple What could make gids wa to fight? Part of an underground scene, akernative spaces ike punk houses provide both a haven and a nensor for escapes fom the “real” wold Because of the inflesble 1op-donen stnctues of dominant society, nk houses create utopian imaginares in el, while provi ng a carivallike cacophony of shared expression across especily in “the moat,” the atta between the stage and Bi entwine elbows, facing outward, forming a circ mances shifed territory within the 4 | afterimage of selfcare through agency: Collective moves toward separa recognize that sometimes attention. x not wanted. Informing our actives were other self ‘organized groupstike the AIDS Coston lp Unleash Fower (ACT UP, the Wormers Health Action Mobilization (WHAM, and the Guertila Gitte We ‘were conscons partcipans in complex counterpublics that “foantine] to be theorized [places of active resistance to patriarchy, misogyny, and homophobia Under certain circumstances, separatism i necessary ‘ot only docs terete a safer worl, it ean create eh words in che midst of poset: Tn this exvironment, in the spring of 1994 Women's Punk Are Making Party came about, Hosted atthe Beehive Collective st 995 U Saeet NW, ‘the party was lke any other part: Workshopped at riot ger meetings, the event was be more “open” than closed meetings, explicily inviting “women,” not just selfidentied grit, Participants were asked to bring are supplies terested in filmmaking and photography, 1 had recently begun working as a camera assistant on commercial productions Although 1 was treading a fine Ine, [brought my Video camera, A year previoush; in response 10 anticles appearing in Newnverk, Spin, USA Tay, the ising Past, et, Riot Grr had called for national *media blackout.” A public refusal, 1 media blackout disrupts the flow of information ane interrupts busines as usual In this case, it was employed as a signal fare te those within the ‘counterculture. The blackout indi As Raymond Williams. poin sdan enemy: mass medi fout, “Anything cant be sald, provided that you can afford to say it and that you ean aay it pofitably.”* Those who can afford the large corporate media systems are those with big wallets, calling thei ideological regime the “majority” Addressing a generalized audience, mass media doesn't distinguish unique characteristics among its listeners dustry posons its audience Similan as. mascin thissystem, we are justa heap of raw material In Lacy Thane’s documentary H Changed My Li Bit Kl inte ‘UR (1993), Bikini Kill drusamer and singer Tabi Vailasually remark “Bwerybody’s talking about what kind of gil. Neboxy’s stat riot” Living in late capitalism, we were well avar> of the accepted symbolic paradigm that employs women as commodities, racing images of Female bodies lke dolar bills Selcons-ious performers ‘we understood we were political subjects ina workin which rampant readers, of viewers. The culture ‘commercialism pushed our concerns to the periphery i, that we were “nobody” Something polished or appealing vas not the poin, That was for pop culture. We needed something dificult o translate Communication is a two-way steet that requires conperaton Listening, and asking "What does she want me to know” ane intel ‘othe exchange of information, Mearing,proluced tough chain of Siqifers, can hape realty unless es interpreted by a community of speakers A the party, Sherry sid, “Ugh, T don’ Hk the camera Tes oging me. Its making me fel uncomfrtable 1 turned it off(Cameras change atmospheres are phallic sgifers and are invasive Pare of kxger apparaas, their presence always suggests other ‘unknown, persbly hostile contexts in which captured material will be reviewed an played back Sil, when things got interesting again, T ‘urnod the camera hack on. [thought things might be different for me, ‘maybe. Somewhere, in the back of my mind, my mother's casually ‘rue remark haunted me: “Why do yu think you'e so special?” Laces, in eader to make the video I wanted to make, I realized 1 needed mote footage. Frustrated, I called Sherry, hoping she might help me. Lasted her she would be interested in making aseparate video with farametes she set. Sounding surprised, she decline. {A evs days hter she telephoned, telling me that Angela might be into it. Enceuraged, [quickly made a ist ofall dhe peeple I knew at the pary and their phone numbers, Calling each one dived 1 ‘proposed the same plan. If they hesitated, I suggested they show the rework they had made a the party. IF they were sill unsure, Tsaid they could tlk about someone or a song the loved. ‘My fist meeting, with Angela, was short and direet. She describe her mixed feelings about the party, and how the presenee of ether pecple affected her sense of self and her abiiy to create “The presence of the camera seemed to transform her setivity into something “xther” than what she had planned. My ignorance of how her energy was appropriated made her feel out of control Looking deal into the lens, she said, “and dhar’s why I didn’t wane tobe filmed vither" Sil she presented the work she made chat day: a lampshade painted black and bive withthe faces of the blonde sisters from Te Brady Bunch (1969-78) emerging from the darkness. ‘fier that, I met with five other young women. Some of these collaborations were dancin an afernoon, ike Angela's Others rook ‘weeks o produce, afer elaborate and detailed preparation. "Around is time, Cynthia handed me a fier stying, “You might be interested in this” Ie announced Big Miss Moviola, Conceived by independent filmmaker Miranda July the disbation project we structured like the punk sene, by word of mouth and fiers pased fiom hand wo hand. This er had been brought wo DC from Porland, ‘Oregon, byway ofa touring band, Xerosed, the Big Miss Mocioa fer signaled the punk syle. I promised unbearot magic for five dolar, reminding me of dhe hard sl in the inal pages of come books, Like punk’s embotied gesture of dhe pogo—shoulder patches emblazoned ‘vith pred amon: pong up and dene-—and rot graf use of the number “69:" this message dreely addresed me. Once I finished ceding the video, [duly sent ina VHS tape, a tatement, and five dlls Before the internet, YouTube, and Vimeo, this exchange between audience and producers was generated through another overiooked infrastructure: USPS media mail. waited. What would happen? ‘This new “network for women filmmaker” seemed to answer ny developi concern cht there might be same contol over where and how my video would be received. The risk of being vulnerable in public i «tightening prospect, especially when “dhe public” has always already been marked as male: "T understood the possi hat Big Miss Moviola presented: by generating an auclence, a feminist ‘connter-cinema could be erated. Ideally thie sue would develop slongsde imagemakens so thatthe filmmakers and spectators [would] share a common ffamework of concerns and the audience [could] thus immediatly relat to the film's intervention in a spec area" Engaging dinetly with a groups proces, media in this ens could bea tool, supponing a community a expanding efurer Contestslizing submsisions into groups of ten, the compilations were onganizeel in the order they were received, Far Tung, there were filmmakers from Arizona, Californi, Florida, Ulinsis, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Misssippi, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Uta, Washington, and elsewhere. They also hailed from Germany and the United Kingdom. Comprising a viral naton,* most filmmakers were and sill are unknown teach other A ne accompanied each Chainleter Tape, comprised ofthe individual scatementsand contact informacion ofthe ilmmakers. By itseompletion in 2007, dhe pojext had gathered ‘over two unde short ins by women filmakers Please i found in plays somewhere beyond the tational, the accepted the norm, Expanding group identity and proves imagining fan alternate audience, can be ike conjuring. In gestures of Ixriows defiance, Gil Culture and Gil Power said, This i ma fr yu i fr. Creating the back-ancHonth needed for exchange andl development, generative scene recognizes the value of connections and interactions. ‘When itcomes to relationships, word of mouth stil the mot ela. ‘Otherwise, how are we able est each other? If modes of production correspond to social reproduction, the (Chainletter filmmakers’ lo-fi existence relied upon the domesticated media of the home VCR, With no editing capabilites, chere was ‘nly STOP and RECORD. The replicating signal af bootlegs and its deteriorated imagery became the glue berween cultural subjects It didn't really mater what was playing, or how skilled the performers were. What was more important was the “horizontal comradeship” signaled by the transgressive techniqu's of weind {developments within consimerenltare—fan and pirate catare. ‘When does passivity rurn into aggression? Further, how do we ‘embody and experience being objects of desire in a calture that rationalizes and trvilizes violence against women? Where and how does consent to hegemony occur? A topography emerges, mapping incerseetions and dynamic nodes, revealing rellexive ins and outs. Within systems of structural oppression, definition s always a ‘compromise. Easy, binary thinking becomes brite lingering ‘questions and subleies sre not addressed, Shulling te order of things, we merely played onthe edges of complicity and resistance. [MARY BILYOU is» fimmaker whose work combines the amateur, punk, and {emits consciously engage asa eadery tet. 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