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Performance Art Reveals the Passage of Time and Past Identity


UK-based artist Sarah Sanders exhibits great discipline and documents the passage of time as she continually writes on the ground for her performance piece titled I used to. The artist presents a ritualistic process to address themes of time, memory, identity, and evolution through repetition. She slowly moves through her designated space as the words unfurl from her mind, revealing her past self.

The performance piece features the application of text and movement through a space to physically demonstrate the progression of time. It is simultaneously informative about the artist's own perception of her past self. Each line in her written installation begins with “I used to” and is followed either by a description of something she has done or words that define her past self. Like a public self-examination, the piece is a revealing documentation of identity and change.



Photo credit: Nick Leyland
Sarah Sanders website
via [Visual Poetry]

Pinar

Pinar Noorata is the Managing Editor at My Modern Met. She is a writer, editor, and content creator based in Brooklyn, NY. She earned her BA in Film and Media Studies from CUNY Hunter College and is an alumni of the Center for Arts Education’s Career Development Program in NYC. She has worked at major TV, film, and publishing companies as well as other independent media businesses. When she isn’t writing, editing, or creating videos herself, Pinar enjoys watching movies, reading, crafting, drawing, and volunteering at her local animal shelter.
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