At S.a.L.E. docks, a contemporary art space in Venice, individuals from the Workers Art Coalition, Aaron Burr Society, Social Practice Queens, and G.U.L.F. gathered together to organize the Precarious Workers Pageant. Targeting the deplorable labor conditions that plague the workers building the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, participants visually presented the issues of poverty and hardship that many of these laborers (often from the Indian Subcontinent) faced in building a “respected” art institution. Performers donned fluorescent vest worn by construction workers. One participant’s garb was inscribed with the words, “Guggenheim Museum Abu Dhabi Evil Empire of Art.” The performers lined up and began dismantling a recreation of Gehry’s architectural plans for the space, eventually leaving a pile of simple geometric forms on the floor. After this portion of the performance, participants moved to an outdoor space to voice the stories of these workers.
Artist Greg Sholette referenced two previous incidents as the inspiration for this action: “the Paterson Silk Strike and Pageant of 1913 (held at the then Madison Square Garden), which was characterized by powerful worker/artist solidarity that eventually helped secure an eight-hour workday for silk workers.” Ultimately, as an unofficial counterpart to the 2015 Venice Biennale the pageant drew attention to the plight of indentured servitude increasingly used in the Middle East.
Featured image by Alberto-g-rovi (Own work) via Wikimedia Commons