Table’s laid
Thursday, 10 April 2014 18:10
Written by Félix Suazo
Framed within the complex debates on gender and representations, Table’s laid (in Spanish, Mesa-ser-vida means either that the table has been laid or table-be-life) is an action and installation that presents the life stories of various women. Emancipated from the stove and dishwasher, “out of the fridge” rather than the closet, they come to occupy the table that (in Biblical literature and iconography) was reserved for the master and his disciples. The miracle that occurs here is not the multiplication of the loaves, but rather self-affirmation within a culture conceived and dominated by men.
But what does the title of the exhibition mean? Beyond an ingenious play on words, the sentence contains an existential premise that transforms the object into meaning. In Gabriela’s performance, the tablecloth is also a piece of clothing, and the napkin a verbal trigger to activate dialogue rather than a prophylactic repression of an indiscreet open mouth.
Around the table, opposite or alongside the other members, between speech, the silence of chewing and the sound of cutlery, subjects are revealed that transcend the pleasure of digestion. In the dining room, there is a celebration of the delicacies enjoyed by the guests, but also a questioning of the silences and absences. The moment arrives when what enters (the food) and leaves (the shared voice of the diners) is combined in a single, choral breath, which also contains tensions, reserve and euphoria.
But what does the title of the exhibition mean? Beyond an ingenious play on words, the sentence contains an existential premise that transforms the object into meaning. In Gabriela’s performance, the tablecloth is also a piece of clothing, and the napkin a verbal trigger to activate dialogue rather than a prophylactic repression of an indiscreet open mouth.
Around the table, opposite or alongside the other members, between speech, the silence of chewing and the sound of cutlery, subjects are revealed that transcend the pleasure of digestion. In the dining room, there is a celebration of the delicacies enjoyed by the guests, but also a questioning of the silences and absences. The moment arrives when what enters (the food) and leaves (the shared voice of the diners) is combined in a single, choral breath, which also contains tensions, reserve and euphoria.