(Skin)Aesthetics (First Manifesto)

ABSTRACT '(Skin)Aesthetics (First Manifesto)' offers an introduction to my new performance theory and method of performance analysis: ‘(skin)aesthetics’. In the spirit of a manifesto, I outline the theoretical development of (skin)aesthetics as an approach and its objectives. (Skin)aesthetics focusses on the spectator’s skin as an active and reciprocal site of engagement in the performance environment. It considers the way that other materials, and senses, represent or emulate the skin and the tactile sense, as well as investigating how the spectator’s skin-based experience might be manipulated to communicate meaning in performance environments. It asks how spectators might be drawn into empathetic relation with others through such skin-based experiences.