Waiting @ Faith Wilding. 1972

- WILDING Faith, Waiting, 1972 (re-enact 2007-2009).

Faith Wilding emigrated from Paraguay to the USA in 1961 (born in 1943). She studied and worked with Judy Chicago and was part of the Feminist Art Program and Womanhouse in Los Angeles in the early 1970s. Till this day, she refuses to limit herself to a single artistic medium, and she continues to expand and develop the formal structures of her art. Her works are textile sculptures, performance, new media and critical discourses that explore social problems and issues. Faith Wilding is a faculty member, advisor and the Chair of the Performance Department of the School of the Art Institute in Chicago.

A 15-minute monolog, scripted and performed by Faith Wilding in the Performance program at Womanhouse, Waiting condenses a woman’s entire life into a monotonous, repetitive cycle of waiting for life to begin while she is serving and maintaining the lives of others. Faith Wilding re-enacted this iconographic performance from the 1970s in 2007. She performed it again for re.act.feminism on 23 January 2009.

Waiting was performed at Womanhouse in Los Angeles sponsored by the Feminist Art Program, California Institute of Arts. Extrait :

« Waiting

A Poem By Faith Wilding

Waiting… waiting… waiting…

Waiting for someone to come in

Waiting for someone to hold me

Waiting for someone to feed me

Waiting for someone to change my diaper

Waiting to scrawl, to walk, waiting to talk

Waiting to be cuddled

Waiting for someone to take me outside

Waiting for someone to play with me

Waiting for someone to take me outside

Waiting for someone to read to me, dress me, tie my shoes

Waiting for Mommy to brush my hair

Waiting for her to curl my hair

Waiting to wear my frilly dress

Waiting to be a pretty girl

Waiting to grow up Waiting…

Waiting for my breasts to develop

Waiting to wear a bra

Waiting to menstruate

Waiting to read forbidden books

Waiting to stop being clumsy

Waiting to have a good figure

Waiting for my first date

Waiting to have a boyfriend

Waiting to go to a party, to be asked to dance, to dance close

Waiting to be beautiful

Waiting for the secret

Waiting for life to begin Waiting…

Waiting to be somebody

Waiting to wear makeup

Waiting for my pimples to go away

Waiting to wear lipstick, to wear high heels and stockings

Waiting to get dressed up, to shave my legs

Waiting to be pretty Waiting…

Waiting for him to notice me, to call me

Waiting for him to ask me out