A Process Note
Reallifeaninstallation is a web project designed by Phuong T. Vuong and Julie Carr to accompany Carr’s book Real Life: An Installation, (Omnidawn Books, 2018). Thirty-six hypothetical installations have been actualized in digital space by artists of diverse backgrounds, stages in their careers, and artistic practices. Galleries, art spaces, museums, or educational institutions who wish to present this project can do so in a variety of ways, including projection, real-life installation, and live performance. For more information write us at reallifeaninstallation@gmail.com
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INSTALLATION 1
The solitary person turns on the television and waits. The room is dedicated to her. It is her “hotel.” She lies down on the bed. No dust. Windows do not open. Through the floor, a treadmill’s rhythmic whine.
On the walls, photographs of people whose curved backs, whose exhausted flesh, need chemicals daily or hourly. Sheets of charred wallpaper hang from the ceiling and curl.
You are invited. You wander around looking for yourself among the photographs. Eventually you join the woman on the bed. If you sleep, you will dream of her hands on your face.
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Julie Carr is the author of Real Life: An Installation, and nine other books of both poetry and prose. She lives in Denver where she helps to run Counterpath and teaches at CU Boulder. juliecarrpoet.com
Serena Chopra is a writer, dancer, visual and performance artist. serenachopra.com/