In 1917 Franz Kafka wrote the satirical short story “Report to an Academy.” An ape is invited by several academicians to talk about his capture. The group wants to know how he has negotiated and maintained his “release” not to the jungle, but into a civilized western world. In 2011, for this video, I transposed the main character from an ape to a woman, or collectively, Women.

In my version, a mother retells Kafka’s story to her family during a car ride. Her story is voiceover for imagery from the rainy drive shuffled into sequential stages of the development of the painting, ”Lindsay.” The painting’s time-lapse stages and source images – of underwear and fashion advertisements and the tragic celebrity Lindsay Lohan -- become a backdrop for the mother's retelling: The officials request a Chimpanzee (woman) to report on what it is like to be captive in civilized (male-defined) society. How does she manage to get out of her cage? What does she have to do to stay out? Is she free outside the cage? The story is her report. 

Award, Third Place. Artillery Magazine Video Screening, Purple Lounge, The Standard Hotel, West Hollywood, April 2011.