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KEMBRA PFAHLER � Selected Press Amy Sherlock, ‘What’s Behind the Voluptuous Horror of Kembra Pfahler?’ Frieze, 26 June 2019 The provocative New York performance artist talks When my parents divorced, my stepfather, Larry about her influences – from surfing to Jack Smith Ball, moved in with us. He was a poet from Detroit and his record collection included Parliament Amy Sherlock: When did you know you wanted to Funkadelic and Bootsy Collins, his books were be an artist? mind-bendingly interesting and he had pillowcases filled with marijuana. It was part of the culture at Kembra Pfahler: I grew up in the 1960s in Hermosa the time for young kids to take the same drugs as Beach, California – a golden South Bay surfer city. their parents, for all of us to be in a state of oblite- My father, Freddy Pfahler, was a legendary surfer ration, driving towards higher consciousness. who was in Bruce Brown documentaries, including The Endless Summer (1966) and Slippery When My childhood is a source of inspiration that still Wet (1958). It was an idyllic time, when surfing lifts my spirits. I meditate saying the names of was our American Renaissance and the lights of those places – Dominator, Redondo, Hermosa, consciousness were being turned on. There was Pacific Palisades, Malibu – and I feel the warmth in so much ritual, mythology and non-traditional my heart. religious custom in my life – like getting up at 5am with my father to watch the tide. AS Why did you move to New York? AS What did you mother do? KP I kept getting thrown out of school. I was a teenage goth, I dyed my hair from a young age and I KP My mother, Judy Ball, is also an artistic person. liked the dark women of horror. My aunt was a cast- She had me when she was just 18 years old. Every ing director for horror movies – she had worked night, she would sit on my bed and take my hand with Kathryn Bigelow and Stephen King – and one and say: ‘I love you. You’re an artist. You’re going to of her best friends, an English lady called Rita, said grow up to be a very creative woman.’ Like many to me: ‘Kembra, why don’t you come over to my people, I experienced a lot of violence and chaos house and draw.’ So, I did that for a couple of years in my life as well as all that love but, underlyingly, I and prepared my drawing portfolio for New York’s was a lucky kid growing up in that era right on the School of Visual Arts. I was accepted when I was beach. in 11th grade: I didn’t even finish high school. My earliest influence was probably the SS Domi- AS When did you start doing performance rather nator, which was shipwrecked in Palos Verdes in than drawing? 1961. All of the surf kids were obsessed with it and, every day, we would pedal our bicycles down there. KP The performance came about because I was To the right of the shipwreck was Malibu. In our living in apartments that had literally nothing in child consciousness, it was heaven – bigger waves, them. I had my body to work with and that was it. more interesting people, a scarier life. AS Who were your teachers? AS So, you were on the beach every day? KP Mary Heilmann, Lorraine O’Grady – in fact, KP Yes, we were always just in bikinis. We’d put I was in a performance this year with Lorraine, on our clothes to go see films, but we didn’t wear Laurie Anderson and Anohni at The Kitchen in New shoes – kids from the beach never wore shoes. I re- York called She Who Saw Beautiful Things. It was member the sticky floors on my bare feet, my face dedicated to the late Japanese trans performer hot and sunburnt, going into Grauman’s Chinese Dr Julia, who played with Anohni and the John- Theatre in L.A. to see a film – it was my idea of sons. And, in 2008, my work was shown alongside heaven on earth. Mary Heilmann’s at the Whitney Biennial. I’ve been incredibly lucky to work with some of my favour- mean I’m curvy or fat?’ Then she took my hand and ite teachers and artists. I didn’t care for Joseph said: ‘You’re an artist and this is a creative project.’ Kosuth, though. He once screamed at me: ‘Kembra, She never sued me; she just let me be an artist. what are you?’ At first, I turned away, because his words really hurt me. Then I looked him in the eye AS Recently, you’ve been working on a project and said: ‘I’m an availabilist. I make the best use of called Future Feminism. what’s available.’ Sometimes, anger can point you in a direction, and that’s what happened to me that KP Anohni, Johanna Constantine, CocoRosie day. I invented availabilism because he enraged and myself launched Future Feminism in 2014. It me. stemmed from a desire to speak with one another about our practices without a sense of hierarchy. AS A lot of your work now is about gender politics. We do not make decisions based on a majority: we Did anyone specific shape your thinking around continue our discussions until we reach a consen- that? sus. It takes much longer and changes your percep- tion of time. It’s been one of the greatest yet most KP My first husband, Samoa Moriki. When I first difficult experiments of my life. saw him, he was dancing on the bar at the Pyra- mid Club in the East Village. We were married and Tragically, Ashley Mead, an incredible artist and open-mindedness and grassroots activism – the AS Your work has always been very collaborative. worked together for 21 years. He was from Hiroshi- one of our interns on the 2014 ‘Future Feminism’ principles of which are still the most vital to me. ma and adored Japanese theatre: Butoh, Noh and exhibition, was murdered by her boyfriend shortly Important as it is to collaborate and meet others, KP I do feel the need for community and I be- playwrights like Yukio Mishima. But he especially after the show. She was only in her early 20s and though, I still spend a great deal of time isolating lieve the greatest changes are wrought through loved extreme outside performances, in which had a daughter. myself, instinctively protecting this painful human- open-mindedness and grassroots activism – the people would dive from the sky into pools of wa- ity. But I learned the value of contrarianism from principles of which are still the most vital to me. ter: physically courageous, beautiful acts. Samoa AS Oh my God: that’s horrendous. Lydia Lunch. So, when I crave retreat, I remind Important as it is to collaborate and meet others, appeared at one of the first Wigstock drag festivals myself to go out. though, I still spend a great deal of time isolating with Lady Bunny and collaborated with the great KP Our 2017 exhibition in Aarhus was focused myself, instinctively protecting this painful human- performance artist Tanya Ransom, who sadly died on sharing Ashley’s story: we wanted to create a AS Can you say a bit more about why Lydia Lunch ity. But I learned the value of contrarianism from of AIDS. Ransom was queer but had a child with a narrative about her life that wasn’t entirely tragic. has been so significant? Lydia Lunch. So, when I crave retreat, I remind woman called Paula Swede. At the time, many of Ashley was one of the young people in the group myself to go out. us were gender fluid and simply didn’t talk about it: who kept us all together, reminded us of our pri- KP Risk, sacrifice, generosity, articulation, humour. the language was only just being born. Later, im- orities. She was a great influence on me – even Food rather than deprivation. She taught us all AS Can you say a bit more about why Lydia Lunch portant people like Ron Athey, Bruce LaBruce and though I was 53 at the time – because she taught how to eat when she spoke about the need to feed. has been so significant? Vaginal Creme Davis would articulate it. me about patience, sacrifice and open-minded- Lydia is a curvaceous lady, not an anorexic Califor- ness; she taught me about sharing, love and joy. nian like me. I never really learnt how to take care KP Risk, sacrifice, generosity, articulation, humour. AS In 1990, you formed a band with Samoa called She was the foundation for Future Feminism. of myself: Lydia talking about food helped a lot. Food rather than deprivation. She taught us all The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black. What’s the how to eat when she spoke about the need to feed. story behind the name? Johanna made a sculpture in which Ashley’s beau- AS You were in Shadows in the City (1991) with Lydia is a curvaceous lady, not an anorexic Califor- tiful body – which had been brutally dismembered legendary performance artist Jack Smith. How was nian like me. I never really learnt how to take care KP I loved all of Karen Black’s films: she was – was, symbolically, put back together. The local that experience? of myself: Lydia talking about food helped a lot. somehow beautiful yet ugly, and her conscious- people helped us build a boat where we held a ness was so expanded.

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