Gavin Brown’s enterprise was transformed into an open performance space for a week and renamed the “experience”. Anyone affiliated with the gallery and friends of friends were welcome to contribute. I gave the event its title, and decorated the space in a Warhol-Factory-meets-Indian-restaurant style. The walls were covered with Mylar (Gavin cut a hole in it to project films on the white wall behind, but the light reflecting in the surrounding silver was mad). The large wall painting of Taj Mahal in the background was painted with tempera paint straight on the Mylar, and as it dried after a couple of days, the whole painting literally fell off the wall.

Of the things I remember most was the last performance of Fancy Pantz School of Dance, performances by Early Hiroshi, film screenings of Jim McBride’s My Girlfriend’s Wedding (1969) with the young hippie Clarissa Dalrymple speaking about her ways of revolution (she caused a stir when she appeared in person afterwards), videos by Jonathan Horowitz, Jeremy Blake and Teresa Duncan’s ‘ History of Glamour’ and some Scottish bagpipers, who were passing through town after a long trip in America, and played for cash to go home. But in addition to this, there were so many other things, acts and events taking place here, and in the chaos little documentation was made. If you were there and have any pictures to share, do let me know.

texts on Oriental Nights:

Mir, Aleksandra, On Dance—the Vision of Chris Holstad.