The Provocateur
12.06.2015
Get angry
And I asked the citizens of Bergen to stand up and to throw balls after me while I was screaming:
I do not have to tell you that the situation is miserable. Everybody obvious knows that. There is a depression going on. Either you are unemployed otherwise you walk around terrified that you will lose your job. You do not know what you are worth tomorrow, because the banks will go bankruptcy and the shopkeepers have guns behind the counter. We know the air is unfit to breathe and our food is unfit for consumption, and we sit and stare at the screen while a local reporter tells us that today there has been fifteen murders and sixty-three violent crimes, as if that’s how it should be. We know that the situation is bad – worse than bad. So we do not go out anymore. We stay at home, and the world we live in is slowly getting smaller and the only thing we have in comment is: Let us at least be left alone in our living rooms. Let me have the toaster and the television and my aluminium rims, and I will not say anything. Just leave me alone.
Well, I’m not going to leave you in peace. I want you to be angry! I do not want you to protest. I do not want you to rebel – I do not want you to write to someone in the government, since I do not have a clue what you should write. I do not know what to do with the depression and the inflation and the Russians and street violence. The only thing that I know is, that first you have to get angry. You must say: I am a HUMAN, dammit! My life is VALUABLE!
And I yelled to them: You shall get over to the cage. I want you to come over to the cage immediately. Come to me and yell: I AM PISSED AND I DO NOT WANT TO PUT UP WITH THIS ANYMORE!
The image is taken by the photographer Meng Tian / Festspillene i Bergen.
The Provocateur
11.06.2015
Holy body
And a runner passed me and I stripped in front of her. I took of my clothes while I proclaimed: God knows it is the body that matters. It hosts my life and my soul. It depends on who and how long anyone wants to stare at me. Even if I am wiser than death it is my brain that makes me feel sexy, attractive and productive. It is my body. My body is my future, my self-esteem, my capital – MY CRU-CI-FIX. And the fitness centre is my church.
The image is taken by Meng Tian / Festspillene i Bergen.
The Provocateur
10.06.2015
Elderly people
And I spoke with the elderly people about the fear of being called a racist just because you think that they should be helped locally because you think that we cannot integrate all of them, the strangers, those who are on the run from war. And I gave them absolution and promised that they were good people and that it is natural that there is not space for everyone. And they asked me: Do you hear the inner voice? The one, who wants to send immigrants back home where they came from every time they yell loudly on the bus. Gurgling away with what they call language, and which sounds more like they are about to vomit or like they throw up. Al gargha, al akhfa . We must protect public peace and order. We must protect Norwegian culture. And I told them that anxiety is within us all. That the surveillance industry has a huge growth potential. That this is where they should invest their hard earned pension. The more uncertain and anxious we are, the more the pension is worth – and the old were fresh and the sick got up and ran down to the bank to invest. And they boosted their shares with anxiety.
The image is taken by Palle Steen Christensen, Sort/Hvid.
The Provocateur
09.06.2015
Politics
And I talked to a politician who said: It may well be that these immigrants are not terrorists but war sounds are coming out of their breath, and their clothes reeks of bombed homes and burned cities. They cannot fail to remind the established population that their security can shatter – and that is why I have to sing along. Soon it is time for election.
The image is taken by Meng Tian / Festspillene i Bergen.
The Provocateur
08.06.2015
A question of business
And I talk to business people. They are busy with business, keeping the wheels in motion and creating growth. In few words, the true Gods who we must thank and admire for their initiative and risk-taking. They are the ones we have to thank for the crashing banks, and I whisper to them: What if what we really know it? What if we know, that it cannot continue? That the earth cannot bear it. Overcrowding, overuse, climate crisis. What if we know, that we cannot continue to scream “growth, growth, growth”? What if we are the ones who know it? Who have had enough? Which will have a different story? Another draft of a civilization? A future we can believe in? What if it’s us – and not someone else, and not tomorrow, but now? And at the harbor I meet the new European youth who have started to sweeten the life in Bergen with Spanish paella and Greek gyros. One man’s death is another man’s bread and hurray for freedom of movement.
The image is taken by Palle Steen Christensen, Sort/Hvid.
The Provocateur
07.06.2015
Bergen is a pretty city
I was in Bergen from the 3rd to the 6th of June. From my spot in the cage at Torgallmeningen I tried to shout at people, to get them to speak, make them confess, to see if I could be their psychiatrist just for a while . To see if I could scratch in the paint and see what the colours are hiding beneath the polished surface of Bergen. Bergen is a pretty city and it was nice to sing: alle børn er brune/som et nystegt brød. It was great to feel the longing to be a healthy, tolerant and functioning human being with sensible values. Hey Bergen – how are things going with the fear of being an outcast, not to find your identity, not being in shape, not to be like the others. Why is everyone wearing sportswear? Do you also fuck in it? Runs the Marathon in the same line?
The image is taken by Palle Steen Christensen, Sort/Hvid.
The Provocateur
05.06.2015
The Norwegian youth
In Bergen I speak with youth about the millions of slaves who make their fancy clothes. I speak with them about the smashed hands of children making their iPhones and their iPads, so their iLife can be communicated on the widest platforms. And I ask them if they know it and they do, of course, but they want to be young and happy. And shouldn’t they be allowed? I ask myself. Of course. The disease is inherited. I try to beg for a blowjob because I think that young people are less stingy with their bodies, but will they lick a furious clown? And Jesus said to the children in the congregation: I må elske jer selv højere end den næste. I må hjælpe jer selv før den anden. Vi er ikke født lige og kun ved at erkende det, kan vi løfte de andre ud af fattigdom. And the children nodded.
The image is taken by the photographer Thor Brødreskift / Festspillene i Bergen.
The Provocateur
01.06.2015
Refugees from Syria
I am on my way to Norway. I have heard that the Norwegians are occupied with the refugees from Syria. Right now, the politicians at the Norwegian Parliament debate about the refugee situation in the Mediterranean and Syria, and if more Syrian refugees should come to Norway or not. The Norwegian left-wing political parties Arbeiderpartiet, SV and Senterpartiet say yes to 10.000 refugees from Syria. The Norwegian right-wing political parties Høyre og Frp think that it is better to help the refugees “where they are” and do not want the refugees to come to Norway. So, is this really what occupies the Norwegian people right now I ask myself – and if it is – what is the underlying agenda behind this theme?
In other words. I am on my way to Bergen in Norway to investigate how things are going with double standards? With freedom of speech? With tolerance? With racism? With xenophobia? With indifference? With alienation? With state terrorism? With democracy? With nationalism? With the market? With the people? With everyday racism? With globalization? With integration? With strategy? With counterstrategy? With value relativism? With economy? With principles? With cohesiveness? With willpower? In other words, how flexible is your capitalism Norway?
The image is taken by the photographer Raad Adayleh, NTB Scanpix/AP found at nrksuper.no, and the blog post is written from the article Bør Norge ta imot 10.000 flyktninger?. The article is used artistically at theprovocateur.dk because it inspires to a public debate. If we happen to violate any copyrights you might have, please do not hesitate to make contact, and the post will be removed.
Theprovocateur.dk is not a commercial blog. The drive is to produce controversial, political and uncompromising performances using cross-aesthetic methods and displaying on diverse platforms in reflecting contemporary social topics and debate.
The Provocateur
29.05.2015
Global warming
I am on my way to Norway. I have heard that the Norwegians are occupied with global warming and the terms “the green shift” and “green growth”. It is often said that green industries are the future. Though, Norway has Europe’s highest consumption volume per. capita. So, are the Norwegian people really occupied with global warming right now I ask myself – and if they are – what is the underlying agenda behind this theme?
In other words. I am on my way to Bergen in Norway to investigate how things are going with double standards? With freedom of speech? With tolerance? With racism? With xenophobia? With indifference? With alienation? With state terrorism? With democracy? With nationalism? With the market? With the people? With everyday racism? With globalization? With integration? With strategy? With counterstrategy? With value relativism? With economy? With principles? With cohesiveness? With willpower? In other words, how flexible is your capitalism Norway?
The image is taken by the photographer Håkon Mosvold Larsen found at aftenposten.no, and the blog post is written from the article Norsk forbruk på Europa-toppen. The article is used artistically at theprovocateur.dk because it inspires to a public debate. If we happen to violate any copyrights you might have, please do not hesitate to make contact, and the post will be removed.
Theprovocateur.dk is not a commercial blog. The drive is to produce controversial, political and uncompromising performances using cross-aesthetic methods and displaying on diverse platforms in reflecting contemporary social topics and debate.
The Provocateur
27.05.2015
Modern slavery
I am on my way to Norway. I have heard that the Norwegians are occupied with modern slavery. It is considered as the third largest illegal industry in the world. Do you know that there also is slavery in Norway?
In Norway, most slaves are from Nigeria and Romania. With slaves it means people who cannot move freely, who are forced to perform work and which do not control their belongings. Slaves are people who are caught; they are tricked into a situation they never would have chosen with their free will. Many are abused. Modern slavery thrives best on black markets which are growing in Norway. So, is this really what occupies the Norwegian people right now I ask myself – and if it is – what is the underlying agenda behind this theme?
In other words, I am on my way to Bergen in Norway to investigate how things are going with double standards? With freedom of speech? With tolerance? With racism? With xenophobia? With indifference? With alienation? With state terrorism? With democracy? With nationalism? With the market? With the people? With everyday racism? With globalization? With integration? With strategy? With counterstrategy? With value relativism? With economy? With principles? With cohesiveness? With willpower? In other words, how flexible is your capitalism Norway?
The image is taken by the photographer Øistein Norum Monsen found at dagbladet.no, and the blog post is written from the article Åtte tiltak for å bekjempe moderne slaver. The article is used artistically at theprovocateur.dk because it inspires to a public debate. If we happen to violate any copyrights you might have, please do not hesitate to make contact, and the post will be removed.
Theprovocateur.dk is not a commercial blog. The drive is to produce controversial, political and uncompromising performances using cross-aesthetic methods and displaying on diverse platforms in reflecting contemporary social topics and debate.
The Provocateur
22.05.2015
Ethical trade
I am on my way to Norway. I have heard that the Norwegians are occupied with ethical trade. It is estimated that between 24 and 34 million people are exposed to slavery worldwide. Several of these jobs are in the clothing industry. Poor salary and dangerous work for long hours affect their daily lives. In Norway there are good working conditions and good wages, so where does ethical trade fit in? More than one third of the clothing in Norwegian stores is made by people who are not allowed to organize themselves in order to get better rights. So, is this really what occupies the Norwegian people right now I ask myself – and if it is – what is the underlying agenda behind this theme?
In other words. I am on my way to Bergen in Norway to investigate how things are going with double standards? With freedom of speech? With tolerance? With racism? With xenophobia? With indifference? With alienation? With state terrorism? With democracy? With nationalism? With the market? With the people? With everyday racism? With globalization? With integration? With strategy? With counterstrategy? With value relativism? With economy? With principles? With cohesiveness? With willpower? In other words, how flexible is your capitalism Norway?
The image is taken by the photographer John Petter Reinertsen found at bt.no. The blog post is written from the article Ingen kunder, ingen handel. The article is used artistically at theprovocateur.dk because it inspires to a public debate. If we happen to violate any copyrights you might have, please do not hesitate to make contact, and the post will be removed.
Theprovocateur.dk is not a commercial blog. The drive is to produce controversial, political and uncompromising performances using cross-aesthetic methods and displaying on diverse platforms in reflecting contemporary social topics and debate.