“All art is autobiographical;
the pearl is the oyster's autobiography. “
Federico Fellini,
Film director (1965, quoted in
Popova 2012)
I am, by
nature, a curious person. That’s a nice way of saying nosy. I watch people at
every opportunity- on the street, in cafes, on public transport. I don’t think
I’m unusual in this respect but perhaps I am too honest about it. I
particularly like the onset of twilight when I can enjoy the slightly guilty
pleasure of seeing into windows when the occupants have switched on the lights
but not yet drawn the blinds or curtains. I smile at the unintentional theatre
of a person dancing in the kitchen while they cook, convinced that they are
safe and hidden in their personal space. I absorb the details of their
environment - the poster on the wall,
the retro lamp in the corner, the glow from their television screen. They are
quite unaware that aspects of their agency are seeping out and leaving this
trace. My act of viewing transforms it
from domestic mundanity to ephemeral performance art. I am slightly ashamed of my unknown intrusion
but that actually adds to the thrill. I have turned these ordinary people into
unwitting unpaid actors, on a stage that they pay for, framed in the proscenium
arch of their own window. Whether or not Fellini’s oyster makes a conscious
choice, the pearl remains, its laminated structure building until separated
from its creator.
