In an attempt to tie ZEST Hall’s past exhibition “EARTH” and the upcoming exhibition “BODY” together, I thought I’d dig into protest art that responds to climate change. I’m also guilty of being a drama student with a bias towards performance art, so of course I’m drawn to the body as the medium through which one performs and protests.

Theatre is the epitome of bodies producing art, and when taken to the streets - public places and spaces - the body can be utilised to convey all sorts of political messages, through live performance as outright protest. Street Theatre and demonstrations put the body front and centre, to dramatize political activism.

*Red Rebel Brigade shot by Peter Nicholls*

I’m tying “EARTH” exhibition’s themes into ideas that arise from “BODY”, to home in the rise of climate activism (headed by Extinction Rebellion in the UK) and the coexisting rise of the body as a tool within climate change protests. Extinction Rebellion (XR) is a globally recognised movement but was established in the UK, and it is here that compelling protest performances have enriched peaceful occupations, demonstrations, and civil disobedience. A subgroup of XR Rebels have been using their physical selves to invoke action against the climate and biodiversity crisis, and ecological collapse.

There’s a fascination that surrounds performance art which protests climate change; this is my attempt to explore some pieces and also credit the artists behind them, which mainstream media usually omits in favour for highlighting shock factor or making a mockery of individual groups’ efforts and artistic practices. So, let’s have a real look at the body in action.

First up: ‘Crude Truth’, performed by XR affinity groups the Snowflakes and BP or not BP?. On 20th October 2019, climate activists arrived at the National Portrait Gallery to demonstrate. Three protesters lay upon the ground, almost naked and huddled together. They were then covered in “oil”, that dripped down their bare bodies. A poetic monologue was recited by Eden Rickson as the action ensued … but why was this taking place? The National Gallery holds a 30-year-long relationship with BP, the major oil company. The BP Portrait Award Exhibition taking place was, as its title makes obvious, sponsored by BP.

‘Crude Truth’ expresses that there is no place in the arts for sponsorship from oil companies, especially ones deemed climate criminals, who continue to exploit natural resources and recklessly pollute the oceans through oil spills.

This piece of politically motivated performance utilised a public space already primed for the consumption of art; the bodies become viewable artwork in a gallery setting, surrounded by static portraiture. There is a beguiling dynamic produced when the immediacy of bodies in protest is backdropped by other, less urgent artwork in different mediums; art met art from within the very gallery that the climate activists were criticising. Their disruption, therefore, was hard to rebuke by the National Portrait Gallery, when the protest was clearly definable as artistic expression in its own right and far more intriguing than their walls of framed faces.

In ‘Crude Truth’ the performing bodies were in stasis, static on the floor, to produce the message of victimhood - but the body is a versatile artistic medium. It can also be in motion, exercising fluidity, movement, and choreography. Political activism can flourish from the body thanks to its multi-faceted functionality. I continue to be drawn to live art simply because I see bodies as the most flexible tool for creation.

During the height of XR protests, in the later months of 2019, ‘Radical Street Performance’ scattered around London. The umbrella term ‘Radical Street Performance’ brings together two performance groups: Guerrilla Theatre for October (GTFO!) and DANCXR, who both produce live protest art critiquing our industrialised appetite for over-consumption. Effective occupations of London’s landmarks defined this series of pieces, and the bodies in unity and en masse drew much attention.

*DANCXR performance shot by Robert Price*

With no leader or hierarchy, the group of rebel dancers move as one in a practice they coin flocking. In one instance, Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square was used as their stage, on which the ensemble flocked. They moved as if they were a single organism, that breathes and pulsates but is afflicted by a harsh climate. In a more direct use of the body in protest, groups also acted as roadblocks. This was to further XR’s commitment to civil disobedience, intended to force the Government into action.

I can’t end my look into climate change performance without drawing on the most iconic use of the body, that sprung from the XR movement. Where just now I’ve looked at the physical manoeuvring or positioning of bodies - whether fixed or mobile – to create art, the use of the body doesn’t end there. The body as a canvas to be embellished and adorned is equally fascinating.

The now iconic Red Rebel Brigade will be instantly recognisable for their costuming alone. Founded by Doug Francisco, for Invisible Circus and now XR, the silent swarm of bodies, cloaked in red, stand in as a symbol for the blood that unifies us with all species.

*Red Rebel Brigade shot by Jeremy Peters*

Like ghosts, the brigade haunt public spaces, appearing like celestial omens at roadsides and tube stations. Their bodies creep passively, seeping throughout our society, like spilt blood. Put simply, they signify the continued bloodshed from environmental degradation, haemorrhaging away without proper prevention. It’s mesmerizing how the Red Rebel Brigade can insert themselves into ordinary spaces and create an impact from their mere presence alone.

Just the use of the body, shrouded in a headdress and robes, becomes transcendental; just the use of the body’s movement and physical presence becomes poignant; a body exposed out in the open becomes a harbinger of the climate crisis. To me, it absorbs and emits a political statement. The body is not just a vessel for living, it’s a vessel for art, activism, and protest.

Illustrations:

[1] Red Rebel Brigade (2019). Photographer: Peter Nicholls. Available at: https://qz.com/1608619/extinction-rebellion-succeeded-where-most-climate-protests-fail/

[2] XR Art Blockers (2019). Available at: https://extinctionrebellion.uk/2019/10/21/creative-rebellion-arts-and-culture-highlights-from-international-rebellion-london/

[3] XR Protest (2020). Photographer: Justin Tallis. Available at: https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/environment/2020/09/two-faces-extinction-rebellion

[4] ‘Crude Truth’ (2019) by XR. Available at: https://extinctionrebellion.uk/2019/10/20/bp-portrait-awards-targeted-by-extinction-rebellion-activists-pour-crude-oil-over-naked-bodies-within-the-performance-crude-truth/

[5] ‘Crude Truth’ (2019) by XR. Photographer: Henry Nicholls. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/may/03/bp-not-to-take-part-in-judging-panel-for-this-years-portrait-award

[6] ‘Crude Truth’ (2019) by XR. Photographer: Henry Nicholls. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2019/oct/20/semi-naked-activists-protest-national-portrait-gallery-bp-sponsorship-fake-oil-extinction-rebellion

[7] ‘Radical Street Performance’ (2019). Photographer: Robert Price. Available at: https://extinctionrebellion.uk/2019/10/21/creative-rebellion-arts-and-culture-highlights-from-international-rebellion-london/

[8] ‘Radical Street Performance’ (2019). Photographer: Robert Price. Available at: https://extinctionrebellion.uk/2019/10/21/creative-rebellion-arts-and-culture-highlights-from-international-rebellion-london/

[9] Red Rebel Brigade (2019). Photographer: Jeremy Peters. Available at: https://www.cambridgeindependent.co.uk/news/stunning-images-as-xr-red-rebels-take-to-cambridge-streets-9080802/

[10] Red Rebel Brigade Tableaux (2019). Photographer: Tolga Akmen. Available at: https://www.irishtimes.com/business/economy/the-red-rebels-the-imf-chief-s-debut-speech-and-the-new-super-wealthy-1.4045186