Crosswalk (2001) greets us as we enter the Henry right at the front door. The video was shot at a from the angle of a security camera on a busy street in the heart of Toronto’s financial district. An anonymous pedestrian sprints back and forth across the street according to the signal of the traffic light. The artist chose a subject who was also a smoker, which becomes apparent during light changes with the deep breathing associated with extreme physical activity. In watching the video, I could not help to notice how life imitates art by glimpsing the untold masses of UW students filing by, in front of the gallery, on their way to their next class. This factor adds an extra element to the piece.watch crosswalk video

Hiccup #3 (2004) is a series of performances where Mark appeared at the same location on successive days performing the same banal actions at precise times regulated by the audio coming into her earphones. By striving for "annoying deja-vu experiences", she interjects herself into the cityscape as an ephemeral architectural presence. Doing the same actions at the same time, she shows how the nuances, like weather, can change a piece. It is enjoyable to watch the blithe British public sail in and out of their everyday lives right in front the artist. watch hiccup video

33-minute stare (1996) is daringly placed in the museum’s elevator. Take advantage of the down time that the viewer has when using the elevator, Mark just stares. It is oddly comforting to have virtual company during the ride. By braking the implied social taboo of staring, she gives us permission to stare back. WARNING!!! If you stare back, you might loose all sense of time and be riding the elevator for some time. I found the experience to be an instant industrial Zen-like meditative experience. [without the usual crowd of passive-aggressive crystal wielding hippies]. This signature work makes every elevator ride an example of performance art.

Demonstration (2003) was created in front of the contemporary arts center, The Power Plant, in Toronto. Using 20 artist friends, Mark strips out all content form the placards, handbills and slogans to create a humorous expose of the skeleton of political street theater. Chants like "What do we want?…NOTHING!…When do we want it?… NEVER! serve to illustrate both the form and the context of this civic activity. This video is the funniest thing going in Seattle at the moment, and in the dead of winter it is so needed.

Private Conversations with Public Statuary (2003-4) is documentation of four of Mark’s friends interacting with pieces of public art. By redacting the sound from the video, we are left to infer the context of the conversation by body language alone. The great thing about artists like Kelly Mark, is that the leave the viewer the opportunity to fill the vessel of the piece with their own personal iconography. In traveling into this realm, she joins a pantheon of artists headed by none other than Marcel DuChamp. In my mind the sculptures that the artist includes into the conversation only become successful during that interaction.watch rueben from series video

Sniff (1999) is located in the Baci Café above a water and soda refrigerator. The cat, Roonie, is the star of this video. Presented with various objects, the cat examines them with a cool disdainful style, that would make James Dean run back to the Actor’s Studio for more lessons. Viewing the video during the early lunch rush was instructive due to so many people not noticing what was going on. Indeed, this indifference plays into the artist’s oeuvre superbly by making aesthetic experiences available anywhere anytime.watch sniff video

All works are courtesy of the artist, Wynick/Tuck Gallery, Toronto and Tracey Lawerence Gallery, Vancouver BC. Gallery Hours: 11-5 Tuesday through Sunday, 11-8 on Thursdays. The Henry Art Gallery is located on the UW campus in Seattle WA.