[siccer] by Will Rawls

Northeast Portland

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When

Sept. 23–Nov. 5, 2023

Days Vary, Times vary

Cost: Cost Varies

Where

Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA)

15 NE Hancock St
Portland, OR 97212

The following description was submitted by the event organizer.

In [siccer], Will Rawls experiments with stop-motion, a filmmaking technique in which still photographs are strung together to produce a moving image. Through a dance performance and accompanying video installation, Rawls invites us to consider how Black bodies are relentlessly documented, distorted and circulated in the media. Throughoutﾠ[siccer]'s live performance, five dancers are suspended in an uncanny reenactment of an iconic American film. When the camera’s shutter closes momentarily between photographs, a gap in surveillance occurs that allows Rawls and collaborators to play within this interval through physical and vocal improvisations.

The project's title is driven by the usage of “[sic],” a Latin adverb that indicates incorrect spelling within a quotation. [sic] is often employed to contrast Black vernacular with standard English. Upturning this perceived conflict, [siccer] illuminates the verbal, physical play that marks how Black performance actively eludes capture and speculates on the potential for collective strategies of narrating the world uncorrected.

Exhibition Dates: September 23, 2023, to November 5, 2023 — The exhibition is open to the public and free to attend
Performances: October 6 and 7 at 7:00 p.m. / October 8 at 2:00 p.m.