THE PERFORMANCE FESTIVAL: Sweet Worries

The beauty of the Slovenian landscape enchants many. Hilltops adorned with churches, their steeples piercing the sky like sharp spears. Farmers work the land, the smell of cake, baked according to traditional recipes that are kept secret is wafting from the kitchens.

And then the doorbell rings and a short woman is standing in front of you, carrying a box in front of her chest. She invites you to feel what’s inside. You do, and you touch her naked breasts.

What if, in the 1970s, Valie Export really carried out this performance in the Slovenian countryside? In our yard? What if, since the 1990s Bobby Baker had performed her piece monthly in our kitchens? What if Carolee Schneemann pulled a piece of paper from her groin in the village community hall to read her story from it? Would the sweet smell of traditional pastry still be wafting from the kitchens?