Why? Why? Why?

Still, you Might be wondering why?….

a bed?…

Here’s some attempt to break it down:

From an artistic standpoint, I am merging “flash mob” with live installation with photography.  I am always throwing in a rather unexpected angle through a juxtaposed context (aka:  one doesn’t normally see a bed on a pier).  This only amplifies the simple beauty.  It breaks it down to the bare bones of:

joy play  beauty  abundance

From a philosophical standpoint, the bed represents all of humanity, tying us all together, breaking down all racial, economic, age, weight, & mental barriers.  It ties garbage men to Madonna, & fishermen to supermodels.  We are all humans.  We are all experiencing life on Earth.  We all came into this world the same way, & we will all similarly leave it it one day.  In the meantime, though all clearly “human”, we all have our different colors & stories for the world.  But for half a second, we can be reminded of our similarity by jumping on the bed!  This project visually screams what our hearts are craving for daily, & dares us to dive into:  pure & simple joy & play, despite any and all of our differences & socio-economic backgrounds, &/or stigmas/hesitations about “jumping on beds” (and all that that may represent or imply!)

From a political standpoint, well – I never really thought about this as “political”.  However, I really see this as a gesture of “peace”, to be somewhat cliche.  But, I have these visions of an Israeli jumping on the bed next to a shot of a Palestinian doing the same.  I see Gaddafi jumping in one frame, & an American soldier in another…reiterating the point that we are all simply people.  We’re all babies turned children turned:  soldiers, suburban mothers, tyrannical leaders, etc.  Somewhere, at the end of the day, it seems to me that PlayJumpEat is definitely expressing it’s own version of “ubuntu”, aka:  “I am what I am because of who we all are”.

And, in a nutshell, from the get-go, we have always felt that though we are giving a percentage of our proceeds to Philani, THIS PROJECT IS FOR EVERYONE.  The audience is Humanity.  Inevitably, the “grumpy” fisherman cannot erase the smile on his face once he starts jumping.  The rather large woman who lives in a township in South Africa who modeled naked for me in a field showering only wanted to do more!  The 83-year old woman who jumped on my bed was emphatically thanking me for asking her to do it (tho I was also emphatically thanking her!).  The fisherman we had sit in a boat full of cabbages & carrots was reminded of his “good catch” 20 years ago, & not only went home with a smile that day, but with a boat full of cabbages & carrots! For me, this project is warming, healing, fun, light, fresh, empowering, provocative, & needed; like a hot soak &/or a refreshing plunge in cold water (either/or or both as needed!)…for all of us!