Humble — Performance by Renée Van Trier
Dorothea Rust
published in APRESPERF — platform for texts about performance
Dorothea Rust writes after the Performance «HUMBLE» by Renée Van Trier, on Saturday 25.02.2024, at Arsenic Centre d'art scénique contemporaine, Lausanne.
On the 'home page' of Renée Van Trier's website her everyday face looks at you, overlaid with the following text, which I read as her artistic stance as well as her attitude to life: «Renée van Trier a transdisciplinary artist, that mourns the loss of the comfort of disconnected life. Her songs will soothe our anxieties, heal our torments and make us smile for weeks». *1
The title of her latest work is 'HUMBLE'. I witnessed the performance live at the Arsenic Centred'art scénique contemporain.I search the internet for a coherent explanation of the term 'humble' and find 'humility: «The ability to accurately view your talents and flaws while being void of arrogance. Some believe that being humble means having low self-esteem and lack of confidence, but it's the opposite». I would say that the character of Renée’s performance embodies these humble-qualities, that’s why she can bring feeling and empathy for her concern, which she wants to express in her performance HUMBLE, in their whole ambivalences to us.
HUMBLE is both an installation and a performance, both wrapped up in one act, so to speak. It seems to me to be an investigation of self-representations and their effects in 'social media' times. Renée also gives us a guiding maxim for HUMBLE: «At birth you are a promise but at the same time also the greatest possible risk».