TAXI-008: Steven Cohen
by Virginia MacKenny
The latest addition to the TAXI stable is a brave one. Not only because Steven Cohen is one of South Africa's most controversial artists, but because the book itself does not hold back on Cohen's particular terrain that conflates in-your-face queerness, Judaism and live performance. It might have been tempting to gloss over the controversial areas, but the publishers have decided to bring the reader into close proximity with Cohen's offending, trussed-up member in a way that would be unlikely even if you were present at one of his performances. This bravery might make the book highly saleable, or it might scare off some of the readers at whom the book is aimed.
Looking past the close-ups of Cohen's penis, one of the first things one appreciates about the book is the amount of visual information that fills its pages. Many of the performances are illustrated with two or more images giving the reader a clearer idea of the sequence of events at a given performance. The images are advantageously accompanied by extended annotated captions introducing the reader/viewer not only to the event taking place, but also contextualising Cohen's performance in a manner that is instructive, encouraging the perhaps confused/ intimidated reader to venture further.
Even if one never got to read Shaun de Waal and Robyn Sassen's instructive and clearly written text one could take some greater knowledge of Cohen's endeavour with one after merely glancing through the pages. Any reference to work in the body of the text is usefully indexed with a page number in the margin directing the reader to further pictures.
The body of the text is logically laid out taking the reader chronologically through Cohen's work in a manner that clearly describes each piece and the implications thereof as well as exploring the development of his work from his object-based production (furniture and domestic items) to performance art and what Cohen describes as his 'monster drag' or 'conceptual drag' works. It ends with Cohen and Elu's (Cohen's long-time partner and collaborator) recent international successes in France with 'Ballet Atlantique' and 'Regine Chopinot'.
Using, as a header, Cohen's quote that the invasive and confrontational quality of his art is "like surgery without anaesthetic" (with its witty and much quoted put down of traditional art that it is "like anaesthetic without surgery") the authors couch their discussion of Cohen's work in a language that neither talks down to its audience nor retreats into academic obfuscation. The text explicates Cohen's work in a thoughtful and non-confrontational manner.
Cohen's focus on his own anus as a site of artistic practice, for instance, is acknowledged as "extensively suppressed in Western visual representation". The authors guide the reader to consider the implication of these "private parts" being made public, pointing out "societies regulation of sexualities has already invaded the private in the form of legislation and made it public".
This is especially true of course when one considers the legislation that used to exist in South Africa with regard to sex across the colour bar and homosexuality. Thus when Cohen "makes his private parts public, he is playing with a contradiction inherent in the policing of social boundaries". Such succinct summations of the implication of Cohen's confrontational strategy are useful, giving the reader a handle on how to view material that may often feel very alien and offensive.
The educational supplement for schools accompanying the book also pulls no punches. A detailed description by Cohen of Taste, a work where Cohen drinks his own enema is blunt and to the point. Hardly an edifying read, it is full of words like arse, bum, shit and fuck (in full text with no little stars filling in the gaps between the first and last letters). However, this is clearly strategic because the following educational text deals with this openly, asking pupils to discuss why Cohen might use this type of language and consider why he might do what he does.
Attempting to discourage a knee-jerk response it aims to stimulate discussion around the Constitution and the Bill of Rights that in turn creates debate around sexual orientation and the right to freedom of artistic expression. In classes where teachers have to address issues such as HIV/AIDS it would seem that such open discussion around the body and sex could make the book a really valuable tool.
In a book that reads well and is surprisingly accessible given the controversial content of Cohen's work, a minor criticism would be that it might have been useful to add a little additional information, particularly for a South African readership, referencing Cohen's predecessors in Performance Art. This would have helped to indicate that Cohen is not operating in a vacuum.
Performance artists, generating work from their own bodies, often engage with gender and identity as arenas of 'construction'. Drawing off personal experience; resisting the homogenisation, or exclusionary categories of 'Self', they critique and challenge perceptions of the 'Other'. Yasumasa Morimura appeared in the guise of famous female actresses, exploring gender issues within the West and referencing the East where, in the Kabuki traditions of onnagata, men perform female roles, while Matthew Barney goes to great lengths to change and adapt his body with stage prosthesis and makeup.
Britain's Leigh Bowery was doing very similar work to Cohen in the 1980s and 1990s. An equally outrageous manipulator of dress and his own body, Bowery had a cult following. While his presence in a liberal Britain may not have been as provocative as Cohen's in a nationalist South Africa, it certainly pushed the boundaries of social acceptance.
No doubt the book will create controversy amongst the general public but for those used to slagging-off Cohen as an indicator of the degradation of current society, or just another shock artist, the book clearly indicates not only the developmental nature of his work but provides evidence of a serious body of work that is intelligent and deeply compassionate.
Steven Cohen TAXI-008, by Shaun de Waal and Robyn Sassen, Softcover
Publisher: David Krut Publishing, sponsored by Pro Helvetia, the Institut Francais d'Afrique du Sud, the National Arts Council and the Netherlands Embassy
ISBN: 0-9584496-9-4
Price: R150
