These are some ideas developing for the 'invisible generaltion' in Shenzen/Beijing. There would be about two people in these ball like suits lying with their back flat on the ground -(they are in effect, support weights - there would be a box inside their suit to protect their body then sand piled between the box and the outer suit, their arms would be hidden inside the suit. i would want the suit to be quite detailed and colourful with appliqué shapes sewn onto it -- a bit like some of the patterns you get on gymnastics costumes and circus costumes etc. but i would want them to have a kind of hand made quality to them). sticking out from their bellies would be a sleeve like thing then this pole shooting up, two diagonal support brackets from the base of the pole would sit against the upper and lower part of their belly, the two poles from each person would be joined by one horizontal pole, then something draped over this horizontal pole -- i would like this thing to be quite plasticky, maybe strips of plastic sewn together or separate, or strips of plastick like stuff woven together, or else perhaps some kind of parachute like material configured in some way. Im not sure about their faces, they need changing or neutralising in some way, so maybe just painted white or something, or red or yellow....
I kind of invisage the thing being in the middle of some huge flat patch of grass or concrete or some strange empty environment-- so that you approach the thing with it a bit in the distance, unaware of what it is until you get much closer, but it still remains absurd.
In terms of the time period/length of the piece, it depends on the setting and the audience -- and who i can get to 'perform'. Ideally it could be for several hours (but seeming timeless) i don't want the spectacle of a 'start' and a 'finish', it feels like something that needs to be wondered across almost unexpectedly --(ideally i would love it id you were rambling in the hills and you just rambled across it...completely out of nowhere -- but not in the case of china!!!---but it would be funny to have a sheep bahhing next to it!!) ok...but perhaps it could be as part of a route or something -- thats why i would prefer that it is not in a direct artistic context -- i dont want the feeling of 'oh look at this'. instead it should be just there, regardess of whether people want to look at it or not. Therefore preferably not shown in an artspace. But then i dont think i want it in a busy public space either, because it needs to be quiet, and something not with crowds around it, almost a personal encounter or with just a few people. It could also function with no performers --but that is something i need to think about more, because if it is 'less' without the performers then it should not 'be' at all. In someways i would see documentation of it (photo/video) as important to the work too and a work in itself. I dont want the public to be wearing the suits -- so i would need performers or volunteers.