Stein Henningsen

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Performance at The Scandinavian House, Manhatten.
Performing with a block of ice and one hundred one dollar bills.
I arrived with the block of ice on a trolly. The block of ice was totally covered in one dollar bills. I worked with the ice and slowly took away bill after bill til there was no one left. I cleaned the ice before I climbed it. Standing on the ice I tried to brake the ice in two with a sledgehammer. I had to try three times before succeeding, falling heavily to the ground each time.
Duration: 40 minutes
Photos: Joakim Stampe

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Performance at The Scandinavian House, Manhatten NYC.
For the performance I needed one big block of ice, red roses, a mechanical drill, an ice screw and a rope.
I dragged the ice laying on the side into the room by a rope around my neck. When I came into the main room the carpet sucked the block into the carpet so it was almost impossible to move. When I finally made it to the middle of the room I lifted the ice up in a standing position. I drilled holes in the ice, and put roses into these holes. I also gave the audience some red roses to help me end the performance. I lowered the block of ice onto the floor and the audience put flowers on the ice.
Duration: 30 minutes
Photos: Joakim Stampe

Title: Human bowling
Performance at Grace Space Brooklyn.
Performance with what was left of the block of ice from the second day at Scandinavian House. Also using ice screws, a bottle of gin, a shaker, a knife and cocktail glasses.
I asked for volunteers and placed them all at one side of the room. Then closed off the area from the rest of the space with a tape. I grabbed the block of ice and slid in into the wall 90 degrees of the closed in group. The block was divided into several pieces which I bowled into the volunteers area behind the tape. The blocs were sent back to me and I slid them into the volunteers area again and again. No one was hit. They all jumped away easily. After a while I stopped and started to make dry martinis using from the gin and the ice. The drinks were then served to the volunteers and the performance ended.
Duration: 30 minutes
Photos: Joakim Stampe

Title: Meltdown
Performance at the Staten Island Ferries.
Performance with some pieces of ice from the the block used in Grace Space.
I embarked the ferry carrying the ice close to my body. All the way during the crossing I stood in front of the ferry holding the ice melting down my shirt. Arriving Staten Island I left the ferry. When outside the terminal I dropped the ice to the ground.
Duration: 40 minutes
Photos: Joakim Stampe

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Performance on Brooklyn Bridge.
Using ice cubes from the hotel carried in a large bag.
In the performance I am placing myself on the highest point of Brooklyn Bridge. The ice cubes are poured on top of me. I am laying on the bridge for one hour.
Duration: 1 hour
Photos: Joakim Stampe

Titele: Meltdown
For this performance I had two blocks of ice (2 x 230Kg), firewood, some sand, a metal plate and a bowl for the ice to melt down into.
I put the ice 20 cm above the ground on a metal plate, lit the fire on both sides of the standing blocks of ice. When the fire was burning I climbed on top of the two ice blocks and stood for about an hour before I went down. Then I put my feet in the bowl filled with ice water and stood for two hours.
Duration: 3 hours
Photos: Beatrice Persson

Title: Meltdown
Performance with two pieces of ice.
Holding two pieces of ice close to my body to make them melt the fastest possible.
Holding the two pieces for 90 minutes before dropping them to the ground.
Duration: 90 min.
Photos: Live Action

Title: Meltdown
Performing with a block of ice (110Kg), a bowl with ice water and a chair.
I am placing the block of ice on a big block of stone so the ice melting is dripping into the bowl containing smaller pieces of ice. I am placing myself on a chair with my feet into the bowl of ice water for three hours. The feet are ice cold and the sun is warming my neck. The body is in total chaos not knowing how to react.
Duration: 3 hours
Photos: Live Action

Title: Meltdown
Working with a bottle of gin, a block of ice, a blender, three cocktail glasses and a knife.
I am chopping small pieces of ice from the big block and putting them into the blender. Then I am topping the blender with gin, shaking it and serving the gin into the three cocktail glasses already put on top of the big block of ice. I lift the block of ice with the three glasses on and carry the three dry martinis out to the audience.
Duration: 25 minutes
Photos: Live Action

Title: Meltdown
Performing with a torch and a block of ice: 50cm x 50cm x 100cm (250 Kg)
I am standing on the block for three hours using a torch to help the ice melting faster.

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Making two performances in Gothenburg. One in Kunsthallen and one out in the streets.

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I am working with a bathtub, red wine, The Financial Times, two Cuban cigars, two bottles of champagne and a lighter.
The bathtub is filled with red wine holding cellar temperature. I am putting myself into the tub and the wine. Wine is so much colder then I thought it would be. I am reading The Financial Time while drinking champagne and smoking cigars. I am getting wasted...
Duration: 2,5 hours

Title: Guilt I
I am working with a heavy duty chain.
The performance is the durational action of pulling this chain along the main street of Gothenburg until failure.
Duration: 75 minutes

Title: Guilt II
I am working with a heavy duty chain.
The performance starts by picking up the chain laying on the square in front of the Museum. I attach the chain to the closed gate in front of the entrance. There is a reception for people on the inside. They are all sipping champagne. I start pulling the chain trying to loosen the gate. It is hard, very hard. Just stretching the chain feels impossible.I work until I can not move any longer and fall to the ground totally exhausted. The gate is still standing.
Duration: 30 minutes

Title: Guilt
Pulling a heavy duty rusty chain in a small fishing village in south of France.
Three days of pulling the chain until failure, in the city center, in the flee market and in the Saturday market
Duration: approx 2 hours
Video and edit by Joakim Stampe
Photos by Joakim Stampe

Title: Agnus Dei
Performance and Photo installation during the Luleå Summer Biennale 2007.
Installation of 12 large scale photographs in the park creating a background for my performance.
Performing with twelve sheep heads, twelve black tissues, a sword, a military uniform, sound and red paint.
Duration: 45 minutes

Title: Agnus Dei II
Working with 12 sheep heads, one sword, twelve black tissues, The Wall Street Journal and sound.
Staring the performance by reading The Wall Street Journal. Next I am inspecting the twelve bodies on the ground before changing into a military uniform. I lift the black tissues of the sheep heads one by one to the sound of a screaming child. The performance ends when I have exposed all twelve sheep heads. I then give up my weapon and lift my hands into the air.
Duration: 30 minutes

Title: Agnus Dei II
Performance at The Stockholm Art Fair.
Participating artist: Pekka Kainulainen.
I am working with five sheep heads, one military uniform, an exhibited photograph, and a 60 Kg broken marble cross.
I walk through the Art Fair until I find this wall where I lay down the heads on a line. Then I take my exhibited photograph off the wall and lay it in front of the heads and the wall. I bring in the broken marble cross piece by piece and put it together on top on the image showing five bullets. Then I paint around the cross leaving a solid white cross on the canvas. I crawl under the canvas and scream my pain out. Simultaneously Pekka, now kneeling between me and the wall, rips of the roses taped to his head with a cry of pain. Pekka leaves the area and I lay still under the photograph. Performance ends here...
Duration: 45 minutes
Photos: Joakim Stampe

Title: Agnus Dei
Working with a military uniform, a solid string, 12 transprent bags of red liquid, a sword, low lighting and sound.
Duration 30 minutes
Photos: Infr'Action

Title: Crosses of Liberty
I got hold of an original white marble cross like the one the Americans use for the second world war cemeteries in Normandy weighting 60 Kg. I made 25 lighter replicas and visited the countries taking part in the war in Iraq. I took part in Infr'Action Internatinal Performance Festival in Sète with this project.
I put up a cemetery as an installation in the city of Sète where it stood for three days, in the night lit up by red lights. I made one performance with the original marble cross carrying it on my shoulder through the city all the way to installation by the water. There I ended the performance by laying down with the cross on my chest screaming out my pain.
Duration: 30 minutes
Photos: Infr'Action

'Crosses of Liberty'
Installation and performance project spring, summer and fall 2005.
The self financed project started in Colleville-sur-Mer the 6th of June 2004 on the 60 years anniversary for the D-day.
I got hold of an original white marble cross they use for the cemeteries in Normandy. I made 25 lighter replicas and visited the countries taking part in the war in Iraq. I put up a cemetery in the city centers and made performance with the original cross weighing approximate 60 Kg.
Installation and performance in Berlin, Venice, Oslo, Nice, Gothenborg and Copenhagen www.crossesofliberty.com