During this exhibition at MOCA we will be staging the Bellenden Road Fete Worse than Death to coincide with the Big Lunch street party on Sunday the 5th June. This public spectacle will utilize the format of a village fate to explore the art of casualty simulation and will consist of a disaster tour where the Casualties Union (London branch) will stage a series of incidents in different shops along Bellenden Road visualising ‘worst-case’ scenarios that could happen when shopping on the street. Additionally visitors to the street party can learn make-up and acting techniques used to ‘authentically’ portray casualty victims. After this they can take part in competitions with categories such as sculpting the most authentic wound or pulling the most authentic expression of pain. There will also be a CU member offering injury face painting.
As well as addressing the theatrical nature of rescue training exercises and consequent blurring between fiction and reality, the event explores the wider social implications of 'playing dead’ and also examines spectatorship, our morbid fascination with such events for the purposes of entertainment.
Dash & Dem’s Bellenden Road Fete Worse than Death will start at the beginning of the Big Lunch (around 12pm) with a Casualties Union member offering free injury make-up and face painting, to local residence arriving to the closed off road area (this will be ongoing throughout the day).
At (1.30/2pm) The Disaster Tour will start, which will involve two to five different accidents in shops along Bellenden Road ending at MOCA London. The acting and make up classes will then begin in the gallery at MOCA London teaching participants CU techniques, followed by 7 fete style competitions judged by a CU member.
Categories will include: sculpting a wound, pulling an expression of pain, playing dead and a limping contest. Winners will receive 1st, 2nd, and 3rd prize rosettes and limited edition posters. All participants will receive stickers.
After the event, documentation will be exhibited at MOCA so local residents can view what happened on the day. MOCA will show the documentation on between 2 – 4 June, 2011 Thurs and Friday 12 – 6pm Saturday 12 – 4pm