On July 17th, 2010, Tom Estes staged the performance ‘Cake Hole’ as a participant in ArtEvict, at The New Lansdowne Club, 195 Mare St. Hackney, London E8 


In this performance I cut holes in donuts while members of the audience take pictures on a communal camera that is passed around. The simple act of cutting holes in donuts is based on a slang term in activist circles meaning doing something that has little or no real impact. The title of the work is also from a slang term. Generally expressed as ‘shut your cakehole’ it means ‘shut up and keep your opinions to yourself’. The audience participation means that they go beyond mere spectatorship to become part of the performance, and the pictures are then posted on on-line social networking sites and web sites for another, wider on-line audience.

Cake Hole took place as atThe New Lansdowne Club as part of ArtEvict. The New Lansdowne Club which was built c.1699. This Grade II* house is one of the earliest surviving examples of an early Georgian building in the London borough of Hackney. The building also has an interesting history – in 1845 the Elizabeth Fry Institute for Reformation of Women Prisoners was established here to honour Elizabeth Fry’s achievements.

Elizabeth Fry, a Quaker and social reformer, campaigned in the early 1800s for women prisoners to be treated with greater humility. She also campaigned for the importance of education and the learning of skills for life after prison. Many of her principles have been adopted worldwide.

ArtEvict is a monthly live art night hosted in derelict buildings and squats around London. With the ever-present threat of eviction orders, the project shares the fate of the tenants, growing as a nomadic troupe as we move from place to place. Since its conception in November last year, ArtEvict has established itself as an open platform for emerging artists to show new work in live art, bringing ideas to a forum for discussion and re-evaluation. 


 
Also performances by... Greestone Group, Nathalie Bikoro, Jenna Finch, Alvaro, Duncan Ward, Kiki Taira, and Vago Tedosio