Something to fall back on
2018
Aluminium crutch, intermittent performance with stand-in performer, gifted script
Dimensions and durations variable
Performed by Isabel Macmaster on behalf of Isabelle Sully in place of her attendance at the opening and during her allocated invigilation shifts (Sunday, September 2, 2:30–5pm and Saturday, September 8, 2:30–5pm)
Something to fall back on weaves a series of anecdotal security measures throughout a list of the entire contents of the gallery at the time of exhibition. The performance shifts between a first-person monologue and a mechanical compilation of possessions to consider the play between personal assurance and conclusive insurance. To do so, the ‘crutch’ is utilised as a sculptural prop and as metaphor to question the ways in which we publicly protect ourselves both personally and physically through various supportive apparatuses. At the end of the performance, the script is gifted to the gallery and therefore stands in as a contents list for all insurance purposes, should the gallery wish to insure itself against theft, damage or loss.
This work was exhibited in Ancillary Acts, a two-person exhibition by Mitchel Cumming and Isabelle Sully held at KNULP, Sydney, running from 30 August – 16 September, 2018.
