Competition by Kitty Huffman

The assignment for this project was to select five objects. We had to use these objects to generate five texts, than use a performance as a way of structuring these five distinct texts into a singular piece.




I selected five objects randomly to be measured and than placed to compete against each other.





To create unity, I painted all 5 objects black: the tricycle, the kitchen utensils, the bug, the Weight Lifting Exercise Dumbbell and the matchsticks.





To activate these objects, I told a Hungarian nursery rhyme:




Egyedem, begyedem, tengertánc,
Hajdú sógor, mit kívánsz?
Nem kívánok egyebet,
Csak egy falat kenyeret.

We are committed to the Nothing-in-Between – by Kitty Huffman

We were assigned a section from Cage’s Lecture on Commitment, and we had to generate a response in our medium of choice: written, performance, performance written, etc. to be presented.


The John Cage text I received was the following:

“We are not committed to this or that. As the Indians put it: Neti Neti (Not this Not that). We are committed to the Nothing-in-between – whether we know it or not.”


This section from Cage’s Lecture on Commitment inspired me to create a video installation using footage I recorded in Wisconsin in 2011. First, I digitally altered the moving image to create a mirror effect, than I set up an installation with a one sided mirror, which allowed reflection from one side but not from the other, and this created an interesting illusion.

Video of an installation by Kitty Huffman from Colin Winnette on Vimeo.

Using mirror, I also set up another piece taking advantage of a concave mirror, which creates a 3D affect when an object was placed in the middle of the mirror.

Both pieces refer to the quote form John Cage. I wanted to create a state in between reality and illusion, between object and the reflection of it, between magic and science.