Situational Awareness

Performance, 2024, approximately 30 minutes 

Untitled Art, Miami, Florida

Curated by Asianish

In this roaming performance, the artist drags sandals tied to cinderblocks from one empty wall space to another. Each time they reach a new area, they pause, mount to wear the weighted sandals and stand against the wall. Then they repeat the ritual. 

The weighted movement and repetition mirro the burden of hyper-vigilance and fear experienced by Asian femmes in New York City. The piece echoes both imagined and real-life precautions taken to avoid being pushed onto subway tracks—a haunting reality brought to light after the tragic death of Michelle Go, an Asian woman who was pushed to her death on a New York City subway platform in 2022. Through this performance, the artist confronts the anxiety that permeates the daily life of many Asian Americans and femmes living in urban environments, materializing collective trauma into a public ritual.