The Perks of Being Uncomfortable

A review of Danny Volk's lecture at University Galleries.

When asked about his ideas on humor, Danny Volk responded that the humor in his work is “really uncomfortable.”  At the risk of sounding derogative, I will say that this phrase is actually a rather apt description of his lecture. This is not meant to be an insult at all; I think one can be uncomfortable in a good way. It means you are experiencing something new, which you are not quite sure how to react to yet.

Volk could be broadly classified as a performance artist, although he does not always “perform” in front of your typical audience. Some of his work may never be shared with anyone outside of those who were included in the making of the piece, such as his therapy sessions. Volk’s work spans a wide range, from plays and interviews, to getting a job at GAP and managing a boy band.

GAP model Volk

One thing Volk said which really stuck with me was another quote about the humor in his work: “I hope that one isn’t just laughing at it, that one is sort of stuck between two places with their laughter.” While he did not say this until the end, it really sums up how I felt listening to him explain his work. There is an odd sense of humor to it, such as having a balloon choir during his play. But just when you think he only did something for the laughs, he reveals it as being much deeper. When he introduced his GAP project, for example, saying he wanted to give performances one on one, my first thought was some sort of prank. Even the picture he used to introduce it was rather humorous: an awkward photo of himself posing as a GAP model. Then when he explained further, it became clear that it was not a trick or joke, he really was just working at GAP, and recording conversations and experiences he had with customers. As he says, this experience “allowed me to develop an intimate relationship while following someone else’s rules.” What I expected to be funny took an abrupt turn into these serious, sometimes intimate exchanges, and I didn’t really know how to react anymore.

One of the GAP experiences recorded on found paper.

I got a similar vibe from his description of being a manager for the boy band Still Boys. There were a lot of funny aspects to this, such as Danny’s apparent dream to manage a boy band, as well as the band itself. Despite calling themselves a boy band, the members are in their thirties, and they dress up as an eye, mouth and tongue for their performances. Then it started to get a bit odd. He talked about the band manager as a character who fell in love with the eye, and showed a video of the band hanging out in a hotel room, which he apparently took as part of a kind of documentary. He also talked about them writing a handwritten contract on the hotel stationary, because it seemed more real or special somehow than the typed one. Again, these stories were something I felt like I could almost laugh at, but it had gotten too personal. It felt like Volk had just let me in on a private aspect of his life that I shouldn’t have heard.

Still Boys poster

Still Boys performance as eye, mouth, and tongue.

Volk’s lecture itself became one of his performances in this way. Just by describing and showing photos (and sometimes video) of his work, he was able to create the same sense of discomfort he felt the original work conveyed. This was a new work though, it wasn’t as if he was repeating past performances. There is a fundamental difference between performing one on one at GAP and displaying the record of that in a gallery, just as there is another difference between doing those things and then telling an audience about doing them. I find it interesting how he can create so many different works out of one performance. Listening to Volk’s lecture, I felt I was hearing about something truly unique. His cultivation of discomfort forced me to think about how I feel about things versus how I expected how I would feel. I think everyone could do with feeling uncomfortable a little more often. 

A member of Still Boys from the documentary.