Plaque was a performative piece of site-specific writing, in which 30 identical works on folded paper were placed on walls in Soho, London on 13 February 2015.

Through its tangential and transitory features, Plaque sought to demonstrate the limitations of more conventional forms of commemoration and their associated monuments.

The folds of the paper works in Plaque contained a sequence of textual quotations, referring to the nearby plaque on the facade of 28 Dean Street which commemorates Karl Marx’s residence at this address. Through the content and placement of its folded paper works, Plaque revealed a dimension of this history which is left unexplained, or even obscured, by the official GLC plaque on the building.

When Marx lived at 28 Dean Street with his wife Jenny and their children, the surrounding area was characterised by a Prussian spy surveilling Marx in 1852 as “one of the worst, therefore one of the cheapest, quarters of London.”

Subsequently, the character of Soho transformed dramatically. By the time of this performance in 2015, Soho was primarily associated with its arts, nightlife, and media industry activity, and had become notorious for its high rents.

The blue GLC plaque on Marx’s former residence was now located above the restaurant and private club Quo Vadis. By referencing the famous individual who once lived there, it seemingly contributed to the area’s prestige. However, the Marx family’s residence on Dean Street actually arose from financial hardship, occurred in impoverished conditions, and was marked by the deaths of three children. 

These aspects of this history are emphasised by the textual content held within the folds of Plaque, framing this performance as an argument for modes of commemoration that advance social awareness, are attentive to the politics of representation, and encourage close consideration of the significance of monuments.

Jennie Cole, Plaque (2016)
Documentation in Emergency INDEX

Performance documentation of Plaque was published in Emergency INDEX, Vol. 5 (New York: Ugly Duckling Presse, 2016), pp.36-37.

Emergency INDEX is an annual open-submission document of international performance practice. Each volume covers performances from the previous year, including works which occurred only fleetingly or remotely. The goal is not to highlight the experience of the performance, but to document achievements, innovations, and developments in the field of performance practice.

Emergency INDEX is inspired by the early issues of the performance art magazine High Performance (1978-1997), in which artists were openly invited to send in reports of their performance artworks.

The editors of High Performance saw any artist who called their work performance art as legitimately defining the field. Consequently, High Performance became a survey of real practice of performance art, created internally by its varied creators, and not post-rationalized or interpreted by critics and institutions.

Find out more about Emergency INDEX here.

Purchase Emergency INDEX, Vol. 5 from Ugly Duckling Presse here.