Einat Amir: Our Best Intentions

Artis is proud to present the New York debut of Our Best Intentions for Performa 13, a participatory performance series and video installation that blends art, psychotherapy and theater by Tel Aviv-based artist Einat Amir. Comprised of nine interactive evening performances and a four-channel video installation open during gallery hours, Our Best Intentions serves as a platform for unexpected social engagement through the exploration of intimate personal narratives. As one of Israel’s leading performance artists, Amir creates controlled environments that facilitate social experimentation, challenging the viewer to test their own personal boundaries and question societal norms. 

For the project, the gallery space at Affirmation Arts has been transformed into four domestic settings – a living room, bedroom, study and dining room – which serve as the stage set for each hour-long performance and the viewing area for the video installation. Each live, interactive session involves an intimate group of around 20 participants; upon entering the space, individuals select a labeled vest with titles such as “mother,” “lover,” “future,” and “doubt,” which serve as key visual cues for the actions that ensue. After taking their positions in the space, participants are led through collaborative workshops by four moderators and are encouraged to use personal stories and memories to confront unresolved issues and reveal themselves in unexpected ways. No two evenings are alike – each performance is unique and tailored to the participants and moderators involved, creating a semi-private, sacred environment that contrasts the introspective experience of therapy with the more dramatic devices of performance. As the action moves through the different domestic settings, the audience is both active and passive, taking turns to watch other sections and participate within their own group, lending to the climactic, emotional rollercoaster ride that unfolds.

Amir offers performance as a tool for introspection, creating optimal conditions for emotional communication. These intimate sessions buoy their subjects, priming them to question, confront, challenge and replay critical scenarios. Ultimately, Our Best Intentions is an incubator for the processing, redeeming, salvaging and discovery of self as experienced through dramatization and collaborative interaction. 

Please email [email protected] to join the waitlist.