The Skill Crane Kid

As if Stardust Video & Coffee in Orlando wasn’t already an excellent venue of intrigue and good coffee, the habitually eclectic collection of art was augmented today with the inclusion of one very singular piece: Brian Feldman. Particularly, Brian Feldman inside of a Skill crane.

For someone previously unacquainted with Feldman’s work, stepping over the threshold of the cafe to the immediate sight of a grown man of average height and build tucked up in the corner of a game machine amidst a sea of cheap, plush toys freshly imported from China could come as a bit of a shock. However, spending sixteen hours sitting in a glass container sans bathroom breaks is arguably lower on the list of heinous- and relatively masochistic- ventures taken on by Feldman in the past. A quick perusal through the history of the projects listed on his website adds a layer of perspective to this most recent and gleefully obtuse demonstration.

For instance, one of Feldman’s most notable projects found him spinning a bottle with strangers of the opposite sex, and then entering into legal matrimony with the individual selected by the aleatory indication of the glass.

But why thrust oneself into the limelight when laden with such unfortunate circumstances? For money? For notoriety? Maybe just for fun?

Actually, the Feldman projects are oriented around attracting attention, but the acts are far from being narcissistic. Every installation is a visual argument, intended to promote a cause, or at least direct attention towards a polemical issue dear to Mr. Feldman’s heart.

To accentuate what he propounds to be the absurdity of restrictions on same-sex marriages, Feldman entered into a legally-binding union with a woman he didn’t know: just because it was a heterosexual combination, just because they were allowed. For an entire year the couple remained legally bound to one another, but barely in contact and entirely uninvolved with one another’s personal lives. An annulment inevitably took place, but not before that poignant, defiant note resonated firmly among those supporting and following the event; a bleak tenor of uneasiness, the result of that shadow of doubt cast by Feldman over the morality of the institution of marriage, a law that repels some lovers and encourages others to unite disingenuously, based on the premise that some human unions are inherently ‘correct’, not because of any emotion substance or level of commitment, but solely because they are of the opposite sex.

But if Feldman’s goal is to raise awareness of pressing social concerns, what exactly does stuffing himself inside an arcade game machine accomplish?

In 2004 in Sheboygan, WI, a young boy left to his own devices while grocery shopping with a parent crawled into a Skill crane and managed to trap himself inside. The child emerged unscathed, but regardless the incident was of enough importance to inspire Feldman to reproduce it, imparting upon all us the gravity of ensnaring oneself in a public toy box.

For more information about Brian Feldman and his extensive list of projects, visit his website at www.brianfeldman.com