performed for Breaking Solitude” at for Panoplie.org

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Story Time Again - (Summer Animals)


An unauthorized live reading of A. A. Milne’s “The House at Pooh Corner” (1928) Chapter 7 - “In Which Tigger Is Unbounced” and an unauthorized live dramatic reading of the screenplay for “Stillness in The Water” AKA “JAWS” (1975) by Carl Gottlieb and Peter Benchley from the novel by Peter Benchley. The readings took place during the Summer Arts Fest at The Wassiac Project in 2010

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On January 26-28, 2001, MTAA, along with the artist Ricardo Dominguez, G.H. Hovagimyan, Yael Kanarek Tina LaPorta, Diane Ludin, Kevin & Jennifer McCoy, Cary Peppermint and curator Jennifer Crowe took over WeLiveInPublic.com The site was Josh and Tanya’s loft in Soho that was wired to the Internet with chat, sound and 32 cameras. The group named this action The Warhol Hijack. During our stay, MTAA 1.) always wore Elvis sunglasses 2.) slept in a tent pitched in the living room 3.) wrote the words Warhol Hijack in blue tape across the living room floor 4.) recored brief interviews and 5.) presented a online lecture about conceptual art.

The following is the last section of T.Whid’s lecture formatted for chat from the control room and the first section of M.River rebuttal from the bathroom. The transcript for T.Whid’s lecture is here.

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I recently posted some documentation of MTAA’s first attempt at a scene by scene remake Plan 9 back in 2008. We filmed the first four scenes that night, got board and moved onto something else. Altough it was dull, I also thought it was a good idea. I thought over the next few years we could shoot a few scenes every so often. Eventually we would have the complete work. I figured we’re in no rush as no one would be interested in remaking that film. I was wrong.

Apparently someone else started filming a remake in 2009 and it is slated to be released in 2012.



Granted it’s not the pointless line by line homage ala Gus Van Sant’s Psycho 1998 with a lo-fi veneer and Warhol Chelsea Hotel rift that I dreamed of…but it does looks like he’s going to beat me to being first. Dagnabbit. (Shakes fist at Hollywood)

Anyways, if you’re looking to kill some time in the next few months, please feel free to shoot any scene (or 2) from the script. Load it up on Ye ole Youtube and send me a note. permanent link to this post

It began with a basic idea. Stage a performance in which the artwork is watching people standing in line to view the artwork. We decided to present this idea during one of our monthly OTO presentations at our studio. To expand the idea, we planned on presenting the installation as the work of another artist. We selected Eva and Franco Mattes (0100101110101101.ORG.) as our surrogates and contacted them with an outline of our plan. They graciously agreed. In exchange for the use of Mattes identity, we gave them half ownership of the work.

Once we had our Surrogates, we sent out a press release and posted on the OTO website an announcement for the show.

surrogate - substitute, proxy, replacement; deputy, representative, stand-in, standby, stopgap, relief, pinch-hitter, understudy.

Eva and Franco Mattes continue their investigations into power, authorship and identity with “The Surrogates” a new performance based video project. Combining elements of theater, video, surveillance, and social interaction, “The Surrogates” transforms OTO into an experimental social space questioning the distinction between the viewer and the viewed.

On Friday April 11, 2008 the two-hour piece began at 7 p.m. with an open bar and velvet rope welcoming attendees in the hallway. Inside the OTO space proper, two rows of two lawn chairs (numbered 1-4) faced a low stage featuring a 4′x6′ projection screen (center) and a small television monitor (stage right). Attendees entered the darkened room four at a time. Their assigned seats faced a slightly delayed projection of themselves. The monitor revealed hallway waiting activity in real time.

The attendees in the room (now participants) were given little explanation of the piece, though they were invited do as they pleased within the space and to leave at their leisure. Re-entry was not permitted however, and those exiting the piece were immediately replaced by those next behind the velvet rope.



The day after the exhibition, MTAA posted online that while the Mattes (0100101110101101.ORG.) are credited as the authors of “The Surrogates”, MTAA designed, built and executed this work in its entirety.



The following roughly 15 minute video is documentation of the first four participates in the 2 hour Surrogates performance.

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In a March 2009 OTO, Secret School collaborated with a team of economists led by Daniel J. Martin to create a functioning and participatory economy based on the gold standard. In a new blog post, they recap the event and explain the some for the engines behind the system.

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For Self Selected Super St*rs, MTAA simultaneously filmed and screened two new works during a one night performance at Light Industry in 2008.

In the first work of the evening, MTAA asked the audience to join us in an attempt to refilm Plan 9 From Outer Space.


Scene 1 and 2 with Ed Halter as CRISWELL


Scene 3 with T.Whid as DANNY,Thomas Beard as JEFF, Cory Archangel as OPERATOR and and Hanna Magnus as FLIGHT ATTENDANT EDITH


Scene 4 with Chris as GRAVEDIGGER #1, T.Whid as GRAVEDIGGER #2 and Peggy as VAMPIRA

In the second work that night, T.Whid gave Screen Tests to anyone who sat down in a pair of beach chairs on a blanket.


Screen Test with Chris and Peggy

Along with Plan 9 and Screen Test, T.Whid conducted a screening / performance of contemporary loops titled while (!handsInTheAir) {loop;}