Daniel Kok and Luke George explore the delicate rules of submission and domination in shibari while binding each other, and audience members, in rope. D ark lighting combines with booming music. With naked torsos shining, artists Daniel Kok and Luke George slowly, carefully, bind each other in rope. They string themselves β and later audience members β from the ceiling, like colourful trussed chickens. Placed on stage are everyday objects, including a kettle, table and mop bound by neon string, lending a playfully surreal touch.
So sets the scene for the boundary-pushing installation Bunny, which premieres in Sydney this month. Commissioned by Campbelltown Arts Centre, Bunny explores the ancient Japanese knot-tying technique of shibari, but also taps into bondage and rock climbing.
The underground erotic art remains largely clandestine in its native Japan; finding teachers was tough. Central to the art is creating patterns that contrast and complement the natural curves of the usually female body. The beauty lies in juxtaposition: bare skin against rough rope, strength against exposure, a sense of calm against the knife-edge of risk. The son of a courier, Kok is a former army officer and was once Singapore pole dancing champion.
More than eroticism, gender and sexual representation is the focus of the durational piece β it runs for two and a half hours. The former is typically a petite, small-framed woman. However, in their production of Bunny, both rigger Kok and bunny George are male and gay. The repercussions for the performer, he says, are huge. It becomes a sublime and massive task for me as an artist.
To start the process, the two men went back to basics: learning how to tie a knot. They became acutely aware of heightened sensuality and an amplified attention to the body, to each lick of rope, each tightened boundary.
