Attempts to Devour Time
Moving Image, 2021
6 minutes, 47 seconds
Performance by: Annie Goliath
Drumming and Sound Design: Black Astronaut
In this moving image piece, a reinterpretation of the Billows Feeding Machine scene from Charlie Chaplin's movie Modern Times (1936) – which reflected upon exploitative labour practices as a male, factory worker is force fed his lunch to maximise profit – is juxtaposed against problematic aspects of female affective and reproductive labour. The piece further explores the challenges of automation and its effects on human labour. Lastly, it examines the politics of the female body in relation to exploitative labour practices and commodity fetishism within the hyper-consumerist, digital age.