I Climbed Across My Two Little Mountaintops / The Video Performances

The last part of my project “I Climbed Across My Two Little Mountaintops” is the video performances. During my research I came across the story of Saint Agatha. Saint Agatha is a virgin martyr of Christian antiquity who had been tortured with the excision of her breasts by the Roman prefect Quintianus. The reason of her torture was her denial to marry him due to her vow of virginity. She is often depicted iconographically carrying her excised breasts on a platter. Her story inspired me to create three video performances as rituals of worship to the Saint.

The Crucifiction - Referenced by Jesus Christ’s nailing on the cross - I nailed pins into silicone push ups. It was a symbolic act/ritual of the carnal pain that the breasts can suffer.

The Communion - I have been raised in an Orthodox Christian Family and the communion was a very familiar ritual in my childhood. In Orthodox Christianity the communion is red wine and bread. The wine symbolizes the blood of Jesus Christ and the bread his flesh. You worship him by accepting a part of his body into your body. In this performance the melon symbolizes the breasts of Saint Agatha.

The Creation Of The Mountains - This is a long lasting video performance/ritual where I create casts of my breasts as an intimate act with my body.