Returning to <i>Jamais Vu</i>: Uncanny Encounters in the Live Art Archive and in the Flesh

Abstract

This paper explores returning to a performance, again and again, over an extended time frame, to re-imagine and re-view the piece. It focuses on a performance entitled Jamais Vu (2005–2007) by live artist Anne Seagrave. I analyse my personal encounter with the work over time, arguing for the significance of this durational approach, and of this artist/artwork for performance philosophy. I return to the work via writing/rewriting and performing/re-performing based on archival documents and embodied memory.

Keywords

• Anne Seagrave, Live Art, Uncanny, Re-enactment, Spectatorship