Above: a photograph taken as research for Charmaine's Winnipeg performances.

CHARMAINE
12 January - 2 February 2001

Canadian Art magazine calls Charmaine Wheatley a "performance provocateuse." Born and raised in Canada, Charmaine moved to New York City a few years ago. She now works in Canada and the United States. Charmaine's work is frankly exhibitionistic and narcissistic. In a notorious performance enacted at night in 1997 in a rough neighborhood, Charmaine, while unclothed, videotaped reactions to her body as seen through a storefront window. The tape features local toughs who heckle and threaten the artist as she steadfastly videotapes viewers. More recently Charmaine has done performances at strip clubs after distributing invitations to an art audience.

Charmaine showed intimate drawings, video work and excerpts from five years of practice at Gallery One One One (12 January - 2 February 2001) including her chocolate sculptures titled Moonpies (image above), her black-on-black book of explicitly suggestive erotic snapshots (called Cambridge Suites) and her CD compilation of recordings of the fifties classic pop tune Charmaine. This exhibition was accompanied by an off-site performance work.

Curated by Cliff Eyland