Merry Andra, Larmes de Clown:KNAG


experiments in emotion

the experiment is simply, what happens?
 
Merry Andra, Larmes de Clown: KNAG is a 7-piece performance (clown) film-installation as part of Sarah's ongoing project experiments in emotion. The KNAG films (KNAG: Scots, gnawing grief, heartache, pain) are a study in sorrow. The challenges we face (personal, domestic, national, global) stir strong passions. These films were borne from an intense time-limited 2-month period in 2022; Merry Andra, the first film made, was shown along with other experimental works created during that time-frame as part of experiments in emotion in Sarah’s 2022 Open House. For Sarah the prevailing emotions were (and continue to be) GRIEF, SORROW, RAGE. Sarah created and performed in all seven films.

"The Clown is puer aeternus, the eternal child in all of us, the innocent who sees things as they really are and not as convention decrees, who can be counted on to tell us, in the loudest possible voice, that the Emperor is not wearing clothes. It is the part of us that has never grown up, that lives in the heart and in the moment, with no past to regret and no future to dread, the part that only wants to play, completely free of responsibility - and yet is willing and able to save the world if necessary."

Jan Henderson

In recent years the clown has been hijacked - it’s not a scary murderous character or a simple slapstick circus act. Jacques Lecoq, master of physical theatre and clown said, “The Clown has great importance as part of the search for what is laughable and ridiculous in human. We should put the emphasis on the rediscovery of our own individual clown, the one that has grown-up within us and which society does not allow us to express.”  The Clown, who arrived all by itself, is the perfect personage to unmask the ruinage of our age. In each KNAG film there is a new clown; each clown is given an intention and the simple task of eating an onion. Each film is one take, its length dictated by the time it takes to eat the onion. There were no rehearsals. The purely physical act of eating an onion brought tears, and certainly stress – sometimes real grief or sorrow followed. The Clown’s intention often got forgotten because of the difficulty of the task. In these films Sarah wanted to observe whether the purely physical can prompt the emotional. Does the clown become sorrowful while eating an onion? Does the viewer feel sorrow, either her own or the clown’s, while watching the clown fulfil the task of eating the onion, which is after all only a hot vegetable? Contrarily, does one feel anything at all? 

In 2022, Sarah 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 Sarah's working process within the strict boundary of a limited time-frame, no matter where she was currently in terms of practice 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.

"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. 

NB The clown will finish the task, no matter.

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 2 film sequences,  Sarah is without onion and without nose.

Sarah conceived, created, wrote, directed and performed in all seven films.

With thanks
Charlie Doherty on camera
James Keane for musical score and sound
Shuen and Jordan at JAMvfx for post production


When we are born, we cry that we are come to this great stage of fools. The Fool, KING LEAR

the clowns 
all played and created by SARAH CAMERON (copyright) are:

Merry Andra
Grimlich
Hildre Glum
Grieve Sybae
TosKa Bloo
sans nez sans espoir
sans nez sans oignon (the onion as teacher)


portraits of CLOWNS:

Sarah Cameron
Arion Cameron Andreopoulos  
Olive Cameron Andreopoulos


PHENOMENON FILMS 2022


PHENOMENON 1999

created, written, directed, performed by sarah cameron 1999
camera Andy Rumball and Sarah Cameron
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 and post-production  Charlie doherty
sound/music James Keane

experiments in emotion

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!”