Obsession In The Streets - Beginning with Sophie Calle

Sophie Calle, as I understand her, is in accidental genius of a French photographer who started out by stalking people in Paris in order to get an idea of the city through someone else's eyes in the 1970s. She never intended to be a photographer. She has a talent for finding games and playful documentation.

I first met Sophie Calle's work in the Georges Pompidou Centre in Paris at an exhibition of Feminist artwork of the 20th Century. On exhibit were pictures from her project "The Hotel" (1981) where she landed a job as a chambermaid in a hotel in Venice. She took the opportunity while cleaning people's rooms to rifle through their belongings and try to make up a picture of who the guests were purely from the objects she found in their room.

One day, early this year, Stephen and I were in a book shop in Auckland and I picked up a big heavy shiny pink book called "Take Care of Yourself." This was Sophie Calle's 1997 work for the Venice Biennale. She was sent an email from her lover, a writer, breaking up with her. He signed off by saying "take care of yourself..." Sophie took this e-mail and had it interpreted by 107 different women.

"I received an email telling me it was over. I didn't know how to respond. It was almost as if it hadn't been meant for me. It ended with the words, "take care of yourself." And so I did. I asked one hundred and seven women, including two made from wood and one with feathers, chosen for their profession or skills to interpret this letter. To analyze it, comment on it, dance it, sing it. Dissect it. Exhaust it. Understand it for me. Answer for me. It was a way of taking the time to break up. A way of taking care of myself." - Sophie Calle, Take Care of Yourself.

I became instantly obsessed with the work. Then I became obsessed with all of Calle's work. I am obsessed with the idea that there can be a way of processing an obsession so much that eventually it can turn into fine flour.

I intend to make a performance work based on this idea.

I'm going to guess that the first step in processing an obsession is to make it public...

SOPHIE CALLE I AM OBSESSED WITH YOUR WORK!