Janine Antoni - Touch

Janine Antoni is an installation artist that was born in the Bahamas, which influenced her work. One of Antoni’s most known installations was a video titled “Touch” that she created in 2002 in the Bahamas. The Artist’s body plays a crucial role in this piece because it is a commentary on the human body interacting with the surrounding environment. Using herself as the performer made the piece personal especially since the surroundings, which she was performing at, was the view of the ocean in front of her childhood home. In the performance Antoni walks on a tight rope positioned to be a little bit above the horizon of the water and as she walks across the rope the illusion that she is walking on the very surface of the water for just a brief moment is created. “Touch” explores the subject of balance as well as perception, and human/environmental interaction. Even the title of the piece explains how instantaneous moments are because she is only on the horizon for just the instant that the touch is created. Antoni uses the space of an open coast and confines it to the rectangle of her camera’s view. This rectangle she is performing in creates a stronger piece than if it was a wide angle view or live because then the viewers eye-level would change the perspective of the piece and if the beginning and end of the tightrope were shown it would take away from the surreal illusion. The piece was documented through video and this allows Antoni to make factors like eye-level and composition permanent for the viewer; therefore allowing her to get her message across every time the way she intentioned it.