![\"Marilyn](\"http:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/Marilyn_Arsem.jpg\" "\\"Marilyn_Arsem\\"")
<\/a>Time is a tricky thing. Minutes tick by and hours slip through our fingers never to be held again. Internationally recognized performance artist Marilyn Arsem is bringing her talents to Salt Lake City and tackling this elusive theme in a piece titled Marking Time<\/em>. In a press release, Arsem observed, \u201cTime has a way of unraveling at different velocities. It can be excruciatingly slow, moving through your body like molasses. But then it can suddenly accelerate and vanish so rapidly that you are unable to capture even a moment, no matter swift your grasp.\u201d<\/p>\nArsem has performed in 27 countries throughout the world. John Sproul, owner of Nox Contemporary where Arsem will be performing, notes, \u201cThis is a unique experience for Utah and everyone needs to come for at least five minutes. It\u2019s a rare opportunity,\u201d he says. \u201cShe\u2019s actually considered one of the American pioneers of performance art.\u201d Like moments in time the piece is one-of-a-kind and will never be repeated.<\/p>\n
For those of you who are unfamiliar with performance art Sproul explains, \u201cIt\u2019s meditative and reflective. The work is not so much about movement, it\u2019s more about presence, taking that presence and magnifying it.\u201d Some of you may have been present for Ernesto Pujol\u2019s Awaiting<\/em> in 2010. For 12 hours, performers dressed in white circled the steps of the capitol building. Many observers stayed for hours, transfixed by the intriguing, haunting performance. Other people paused, confused. One person was overhead asking, \u201cWhat are they protesting?\u201d Whatever their reason, people stopped to look and take part in the experience.<\/p>\n Performance art takes the audience on a journey. It can be complex and thought provoking or meditative. Each person sees something different in the movement of the performer. Arsem will be Marking Time<\/em> and exploring the space in those passing minutes and hours. Salt Lake has an opportunity to observe and explore with her.<\/p>\n