31 Days Old - Performance, Family and Ethics

In this exposition, Dr Sarah Black-Frizell and Andy Frizell, discuss the performance installation 31 Days Old (2016). This involved a full-scale installation performance in Sarah and Andy’s family home, in collaboration with Sarah (43) her mother (age 66), her auntie (age 54) and her daughter (age 3). This project highlights domestic photography as a strategic trigger for personal and family narratives and memory work. The work consists of film, live performance and original music and soundscapes.

The main part of the exposition focuses on the role of the mother-artist, who initiates an art-making practice with her family and considers the ethical implications that can arise. Sarah begins this exposition by situating her mother art practice and ‘mother ethics’, which guides and activates a theoretical and practical approach to the ethical questions arising when developing a research and artistic practice with family. Andy, a composer, shares his audio recording techniques in the home, and the ways he works sensitively with family narratives to create original sound scores.