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Show Us Your Teeth

Interview with the collective 'Show Us Your Teeth' (Bailee Lobb, Amy Claire Mills, Monica Rudhar and Kate Bobis)

by Emma-Kate Wilson

‘Show Us Your Teeth’ plays on the roles society tells us to do, redefining the ‘modern beauty’ roles. I interviewed Bailee Lobb, Amy Claire Mills, Monica Rudhar and Kate Bobis and found they draw out their personalities to collaborate on all-embracing feminist performances.

The girls came together as they realised they were struggling to learn new skills at university. UNSW had provided the conceptual basis to their works, but they felt technique wasn’t being taught to go beyond what they already knew. Amy had collaborated with another student in her second year, and they realised how useful skill sharing can be. Not only regarding learning things your interested in but also learning skill you may never have even thought about learning. The group started with seven female artists and through the process of forming works the power four were left. They have taken their backgrounds in textiles, performance, theatre and installations to create art that hovers between the lines of fine art and crafty design boundaries. Falling into contemporary art exhibitions in Sydney.

The ladies work collectively and separately to generate conversation, exhibiting in club and ARIs, making the work accessible to the audience. The performances are interactive, attaching relational aesthetics to hand-stitched costumes. They use their bodies to direct the tension and highlight how women are presented in society and through the media. They talk about the taboo subjects and take them to the ridiculous end of the spectrum. Most importantly they are having fun while learning new skills together.

University brought these ladies together, but their personalities made the work. Seeing the collective, you can feel the vibe that radiates off them. They all have a love of glitter, they look for the fun and ridiculous. Their art clearly reflects this, and through this, it generates a conversation with the audience. First aligning with the female-identifying members of the audience, and second through sharing experiences with those who are just spectators to the processes. I love that above any artwork they create they are friends first. Entirely layering on the cheese, they have sleepovers, with face masks and good old pampering sessions.

The ‘Show Us Your Teeth’ ladies are not the first collective to be inspired at university, and they look up to other UNSW collectives for inspiration and advise. The Brown’s Council and 110% being prominent sources. The Brown’s Council inspired them with their commitment and concepts. Performance Fee, a two-hour endurance performance where the artists sit blindfolded on stools, holding silver tins, against a backdrop that reads: "KISSES $2" showed the ‘Show Us Your Teeth’ you may need to sacrifice comfort for the performance, but the message can be so powerful if you do. The reflection of the performance is projected onto the audience. The engagement is the centre of the work. The relationship between 110% and ‘Show Us Your Teeth’ was much more about a personal connection, their engaging social practice gave them inspiration, and they became like an older sibling to the ladies. Helping with getting tax file numbers, organising ideas as well as a source of inspiration.

The performances follow themes of feminist satire. By both subverting the gaze and engaging the audience to spectate and interact, they highlight the role women feel they have to play. Of course, as one sassy non-leg shaver pointed out while the ladies were performing Venus “you don’t have to shave your legs!” why do we then? ‘Show Us Your Teeth’ show the audience that it’s part of the spectacle, the labels or declaration if you don’t partake in rituals aren’t really worth the hassle. Also whether you shave, epilate, wax or go au-natural is nobody else’s business except your self. The ladies take the audience through the whole process, adding the luxury moisturising after the shaving. Throughout the interview we quite often go back to sharing own experiences of the first time you shaved your legs and if no one told you to moisturise- that horrible dry leg feeling! The collective re-live these moments in their performance and highlight how ridiculous the things we put yourself through. Almost as those ridiculous ads on TV or in your glossy magazine. Be smooth, be perfect, make your body look like this, smile - not too much teeth though.

Bailee being the textilian made the first leotards the collective wore, the costume being a layer but a direct copy of what is underneath. The group all collaborate when they make the costumes, yet they tend to make their own costumes, adding an individual influence. They share photos of the process with each over social media and support their development, yet they shared with me that nothing beats actually getting to work alongside each other. They motivate each other, and after three years working together, they know each other well enough that they tend to be all on the same tracks with how the works come together.

‘Show Us Your Teeth’ really comes down how the ladies feel they are expected to act. Show us your teeth is a play on the time old line: “smile”. So they will smile, and you’re going to see teeth. The lips are the source of beauty, the teeth a show of power and strength. And who knows, you may just be getting the bite instead.

The collective has work coming up at Airspace in Marrickville and for the performance showcase in October. They also want to acknowledge the fantastic support they have had from Rachel Levine and Stephen Thorpe for helping document, installing and donating their time to the collective.

Show Us Your Teeth's Instagram: @showusyourteeth

Original article published on the The Ladies Network, June 5, 2016: http://theladiesnetwork.com.au...