experiments in emotion, larmes de clown

the films shown above are pre-post production (all are excerpts bar the first) 

experiments in emotion

experiments in emotion was born through The Open House strand of Brighton Festival in 2022. I chose to use The Open House as an open studio. The initial works in experiments in emotion were all realised, made, written, filmed, played, scored and performed in the 2 months just before the exhibition - except in the case of the Super 8 film PHENOMENON 99 (see PHENOMENON and the pret-a-porter sculpture Chapeau de Jalousie - 'pret-a-porter sculpture' pages are under construction) which was re-visited. Each was either a sketch or a work in progress, the intuitive brushstrokes of works in flux, motion, enquiry. The challenge was to show my working process within the strict boundary of a limited time-frame, no matter where I was currently in terms of practice, knowledge or research; also, to initiate immersion and freedom of play without judgement, question, fear or even aim; liberation after a period of stasis, both self-imposed and (pandemically) imposed; engagement with the world after a period of isolation and change; restoration of former skills and inquiry into new ones. The experiment has manifested several long-term projects and I have made 6 films since 2022. All are currently in pre-production, with small tasters above.

The clown has great importance as part of the search for what is laughable and ridiculous in (hu)man. We should put the emphasis on the rediscovery of our own individual clown, the one that has grown-up.
Jacques Lecoq

The clown lives in the place of laughing and crying at the same time.

The clown arrived all by itself. I did not choose the clown, the clown chose me. At times an ambivalent figure, the clown is the perfect personage to defy the ruinage of our age. The challenges we currently face stir strong passions. Presently, Sarah is focusing on sorrow/grief & rage and she wanted to study these particular emotions first of all. The Merry Andra, Larmes de Clown films are a study in sorrow. There were no rehearsals, just a leap into the experiment. 

The experiment is simply, what happens?

NB The clown will finish the task, no matter.

Through the simple and purely physical act of eating an onion, Sarah wanted to examine sorrow. What happens to the clown via the straightforward yet somewhat challenging task of eating an onion? What happens to the viewer when watching the clown fulfil the task of eating the whole onion? As far as the theme of sorrow is concerned, does/can the clown feel sorrow/grief because of eating an onion, does the clown look sorrowful, do the watchers feel sorrow, grief or empathy for the clown, can/does the watcher become sorrowful and/or empathic? Does the clown embody any other emotion? Does one forget about the onion and become absorbed in the emotion present in the clown, or is it impossible to separate the two? What does the clown have to feel (or the actor) to elicit emotion in a fellow human? Does the performer have to feel to stir emotions in others? The emotion exists, if it exists, only because of the physical act of, and discomfort in, eating the onion - yet the emotion is purely a physical response to a strong, hot vegetable.

Sarah chose to allow the clown to come and go, so that it was not wholly performative or theatrical, so she could at times be visible beneath the smallest mask in the world, the red nose. Each film has a different intention associated with each different clown. In the final film sequence, not shown here, Sarah is without onion and without nose.

Sarah created, wrote, directed and performed in all seven films. With thanks to Charlie Doherty on camera and James Keane for musical score and sound. These are works in progress and are intended to be shown together as part of a 7-piece performance-film installation.

When we are born, we cry that we are come to this great stage of fools.

The Fool, KING LEAR

various portraits of CLOWNS as sorrow 2022


PHENOMENON FILMS 2022

PHENOMENON 1999

created, written, directed, performed (and camera) by sarah cameron 1999
camera Andy Rumball
thanks to Jordan Andreopoulos JAMvfx and brand new score by James Keane

PHENOMENON 22

inspired by PHENOMENON 1999 in 2022
this is a very rough scratch excerpt, the film is in the making, the writing aye in the writing
PHENOMENON 2022 is part of a 5 film installation
created, written, directed by sarah cameron
camera charlie doherty
music James Keane

experiments in emotion

experiments in emotion was born through The Open House strand of Brighton Festival in 2022. I chose to use The Open House as an open studio. PHENOMENON 1999, originally shown in MY OLD MAN SAID FOLLOW THE VAN curated by Carolina Grau was resurrected and its accompanying poem, though rough, had good bones from which to birth a new piece of writing and the performance film PHENOMENON 22. The works in experiments in emotion were all realised, made, written, filmed, played, scored and performed in the 2 months just before the exhibition (in the case of the Super 8 film PHENOMENON 99 (and the pret-a-porter sculpture Chapeau de Jalousie - pret-a-porter sculpture's page is under construction) re-born. Each was either a sketch or a work in progress, the intuitive brushstrokes of works in flux, motion, enquiry. The challenge was to show my working process within the strict boundary of a limited time-frame, no matter where I was currently in terms of practice, knowledge or research; also, to initiate immersion and freedom of play without judgement, question, fear or even aim; liberation after a period of stasis, both self-imposed and (pandemically) imposed; engagement with the world after a period of isolation and change; restoration of former skills and inquiry into new ones. The experiment has manifested several long-term projects.

text for this section (excerpt):

the fizz an’ curse (section five)*the commotion

“YOUSE

bloatit sooted-booted secks

o’feechie fyle veenality *disgusting foul

grubbin’

maire onON maire o’feelthy ill-got booty *more filthy

YOUSE

savage, perfumt SCUM

seek-o’pense, void o’milken-kindness seeck-of-thought *sick of mind

faur-socht*, malverse*, soulless *scheming *corrupt,dishonest

creepin-kneesy-tap-beastie-sodden-cerpet pander tae thiefie king an’ Queenie

fill stufft yir oily pockets wi oor money *stuffed your

oor dosh! Ugh

YOUSE *YOU

scunnersome hertless *FUDS *abhorrent dicks

schamin eejit leear *THUGS *scheming idiot *liar

cruddy hoity-toity murhtherin’ bawBAGS *curdled murdering scrotums

o’crockination* an’ HATE destruction

take take take

…aw swindling swickerie* *swindlng

a deal a dab a wadge fou* o’ dollar *full

grinnin’ idlers

butcherin’ ivery livin’ creatur

tae bluidy smasherie an’ ruinage,

gettin’ feelthy rich an’ plush filthy

UGGSOME SLUGS!

vapid tae the crusty brim, BARRON

o’ empathy, humaneety

nae drap o’common decency in yourn stiff-upper & tart souls

Souls! Youse dinnae hae any!

- the weans stairve

mithers, faithers wirk lifeless an’ breathless

eildit an’ infirm dinnae hae a chancie *elderly

scholarts nae hae time tae study jest tryin’ tae find the money

futurs boond by det & bill

bombs iver drapp frae BLAH BLAH tae BLAH BLAAT *drop

biblical in pairt

coffers ower-flow wi’ bluid-draigelt profeet *blood drenched profit

an’ the-whiles we gasp fir breath

youse powdert dandies perty *party

PERTY!

quaffin’ liquid ruby an’ sperklin’ gowd *sparkling

ramshin’ gowd encrustit chooks an’ hams *chickens

gowd ice-cake an’ middle-finger emerant sponge *emerald

stuffin’ siller coinage up gash an’ erse *vagina and arse

ivery sodden orifice

wi’ ransackt drip an’ swag

cos there’s nae maire space in yer hoose, yer bank!

An we, we the near rest o’ the warld ,be damned

MURTHERERS, youse!

We, the great unwasht

Expire,

oor lungs arreestit arrested

cos youse bandits have stole ivry pairt o’the globe *every part

frae ivery human an’ ainimal soul. animal

YOUSE CUNTS!

Feck off! feck

Youse too can jest feck off

FECK OFF intil an ditch

A CURSE UPO” YER HEIDS!

DIE, youse odorous, silken-kittet FRAUDS

Youse bumptious unctuous wanthrift TURDS extravagant

DIE a yaukin-pine, lanerly, dunk an’ clarty daith *agonising/ *lonely/ *damp/*dirty

let nae-soul keep tender yon luvless haund til the hereafter

let kelt an’jobbied flea-sappit rats ramsh rank flesh *very dirty/ *shitty/flea-soaked/gobble

rip-oot

root by root

gowd-dippt teeth

an’ whiles youse aye quiverin’-breathe,

may fylt black beetle slorach satin gem-filt ears soiled/eat noisily, slobber

slaw, slaw slow

that we may hear youse yelp an’ squaw

in agonisin’ thraws

let sleepperie wirm sup-upo’ slochie* pumpt maw slippery/*slimy

an’ jelly een* *eye

while youse guffaw guffaw

Hah!

an’ may slaikit, bausie tongue beslobbering/large, fat, course

hivy an’taut wi deessemblin’, dissemling

aye evisceratin’ the poverty-struck,

the knackert

the burnt oot

seekin’ tae live athoot

squalor war famine

may thon tongue rot,

turn black an’thick as dung,

an faw aff fall off

A CURSE UPO” YER HEIDS! YOUR HEADS

Die!

Bottler* an maggot *bluE bottle

be soleetary freends

when thon brain is ate by creamy wrigglin’ beasties

heid crackt sindert * apart

boilt egg mush

bowfin unholy maukit * stench smelly/filthy, decayed, putrid

grub pus an’ foulest excrement

be aye alert

tae squeerms an’ teeny-tiny maws gobblin’

frae cerveau tae erse-hole tae soul brain/arse-hole

iverefter

A CURSE UPO’ YER HEIDS!

DIE

anguisht in terreefication an’ crushin’ pain terror

nae howp o’resurrection, or gain

let mangey merciless hell-hoond

frichtsome o’canine fang frightful

ane by ane

shred lairdy-digits, fat-a’dreepin’ lardy

frae greasin’ erses the continents far-streechin’

let frenzied mutt devour

ilk cunnin’ joint an’ deegit athoot surrender each/digit/without

rip whack tear spleet *split

cleave guzzle slerp

an’ verra verra toothsome

afore yourn weepin’ een,

sclice yon spleen, slice

shraid snooty snout raw, gnaw shred

bluid draigelt bone drenched

NOWT but massacre

Karma fir millenia o’plunder, slauchter, murder

Know,

know well that youse are

but dist dist dist

Awa,

awa tae rot in hell,

Youse suppurating gang o’ne’re’do’well!

Youse villains, bruits,

crabs strippt hellish nakit

Niver tae atone

Flayed til bone

Anerly wicket o’ deed

A CURSE UPO’ YER HEIDS!”