Eloise is seen awaiting the download of a piece of music or video. Even though the download doesn’t succeed, she simply says, “It’s not working”, while simultaneously shrugging off her shoulder. The shrug and the radiant smile that follow render her optimistic nature that doesn’t fail to show even in the face of obstacles.

Undismayed, she walks from the laptop to the whiteboard for next segment. She picks up a marker and with big, clear and slanted strokes, she writes out the word, “NEVER”, in capital letters.  As she emphasizes the word, “NEVER”, I anticipate that she’d point out a common mistake or impart some valuable advice. She does exactly that. Her finished work says, “NEVER be content to merely sit and watch”.  She also pauses between the words, “be content” and “sit”, which help to effectively deliver her message.  It is almost as if she is speaking to us, making sure that her intention sinks in our minds. Even though it is her self-portrait, she directs a universal message to the audience of not simply waiting for the performer to take lead, but to become an integral part of the performance by adding their own distinct thoughts.  This message may apply elsewhere in life as well; Eloise tries to teach us the importance of active engagement and thinking instead of mere following. At his point, I, and probably other members of the audience, am thinking if she wants us to take part in her performance.

Next, she walks over to the nearby table on her left, with the same genial smile. As she picks up the orange Jenga box, she actually speaks to the audience and asks them to help her play the game, including myself, the video recorder. This definitely marks her amiable personality, displaying the “people-person” she is. Instead of being nervous to perform in front of the audience, as most of us were, she exhibits such courage and confidence as to invite the audience to engage in the main part of her performance. Thus, the audience becomes an important constituent of her performance. Her consideration of the audience’s involvement in her performance presents her sociable as well as generous nature.

-Faryal

(I unfortunately managed to capture not the actual performance, but only some of the comments after it, with the camera looking down at my shoes :()

Sigal laid out multiple flags on the floor pieces of paper on the floor, all containing images of the Israeli and American flags. She then held up one of the American paper-flags to the audience with a contemplative look on her face… and then the paper flipped to show an Israeli flag on the other side. And then it flipped back to the American side. Then Israeli. Faster and faster. American. Israeli. American. Israeli. Sigal looked confused throughout all of this flipping, as if asking to herself, “Which side am I? Which flag am I loyal to? American? Or Israeli?”

Finally, she picked up another flag from the floor. This one had half of an American flag on it, with the other half Israeli; a custom kind of flag, just for Sigal. After showing this half-and-half flag to the audience, Sigal finally smiled.

Sigal’s self-portrait reflected on the issue of self-identity, a theme common amongst everyone’s self-portraits. A number of us were not born in the United States, and nearly everyone has some heritage in another corner of the world. Though the performance was short, its theme enabled the audience to connect with Sigal, as most of us have surely gone through a similar conflict: trying to figure who exactly it is that we are.

Though Sigal could have used a table for her props, her choice to sit on the floor worked well for this particular piece. Sigal was able to lay out multiple flags on the floor — all parts of her identity — for us, the audience, to see. And because she was on the floor, many in the audience had to shift forward in their seats to see everything that happening. This created a much more inviting performance than if Sigal were sitting and looking at the audience at eye-level.

That said, I did have some trouble enjoying the performance as much as everyone else did because I was trying to film it from above my head (never mind the fact that I apparently had not even pressed record at the time…). I had to make sure that the performance was actually in the shot, which required me to look up at the video camera — while everyone else was looking down at the actual performance. It’s certainly a little harder to enjoy someone’s performance when you’re viewing it behind a piece of glass instead of live, but I enjoyed what I saw nonetheless.

Lisa’s self portrait begins with her seated behind a table with a pen on it. She begins to rapidly click the pen while continually fidgeting in the chair.  As she stirs restlessly in the chair, she starts to play with her hair, but returns to the pen. Throughout the portrait she has a anxious look on her face and her incessant pen clicking is only interrupted by an occasional biting of nails.

What really struck me about Lisa’s portrait was the minimalist approach she took for her presentation. Her props were simple, a pen and a table, yet she was still able to show her message through her facial expression and body language. The table and pen evoked a classroom-like environment in my head and as soon as she begun to click the pen I immediately recognized that her portrait was about nervousness or possibly anxiety from school. Also the silence only broken up by the sound of the pen during her presentation gave the portrait a tense feeling that contributed to the nervous atmosphere. an a I understood this because because I am guilty of the same nervous tendencies as well, save the playing with hair.

I enjoyed her portrait becauseI too am guilty of the same nervous tendencies she portrayed, save the playing with hair. The subject of her portrait is easy to relate to especially in the life of a teenage student. Overall she did a great job in showing that at times anxiety may dominate her just as it can anyone else.