Butterfly-performance

[P.s]

Thank you very much for your openminded and kind reply. If you dont
mind I will reply outside this fora. I rather not discuss the
conceptual part of it etc. in here, not being really in any need of
justifying my idea. But thanks, you got it spot on...

all good









On 11 Apr 2002 10:52:03 -0700, MexicoDoug at aol.com wrote:

>Dear P.s,
>
>As you do touch on an area wide open for interpretation for the closed 
>minded, pranksters and fascists among us, or for that matter maybe you are 
>one such person (The only reason I say this is because usually we identify 
>ourselves better than you have, although perhaps in this case you'd rather 
>not) who thinks this is a joke...I will give my impression taking the 
>"performance" you plan seriously.
>
>If this is your way to come in contact with nature, I see nothing 'mental' 
>about it, as suggested, and the only pervert so far has been Neil, in the 
>sense that he seems to assign "Mariposa" meanings it doesn't have (In all 
>fairness, it was reputed to have this perverted meaning by a recent book 
>which may or may not be Neil's source).  And the fact that some Lepsters are 
>patrolling the list for females simply indicates they are in need of 
>something they may not get enough of...
>
>On to the positive...On ocassions in the field, after an exhausting day of 
>running around (and getting sweaty of course, as noted), I will sit and rest 
>and butterflies land on whatever exposed part of my body, or damp clothes 
>they want and are happy to scuttle around.  If you haven't experienced this 
>sensation, it would be worthwhile getting acustomed to.  I imagine that 
>hundreds of b-flies over every part of the body, including the erogenous 
>zones might be too much for someone who is very ticklish.  However, in 
>isolation, under lest fabricated conditions, one or a few butterflies landing 
>on you when you are in the butterflies' natural habitat, surrounded by 
>nature, host plants does have a wonderful uplifting feeling. A way to bond 
>with nature in ways that many others will never know.  Perhaps the 
>interesting part is the entire experience of such fragile and beautiful 
>creatures.  Nabokov loved what I describe and maybe wrote his autobiography 
>with this in mind, as well as used it as an inspiration for others.
>
>You mention recently emerged butterflies.  As has been interpreted, it sounds 
>like you will have bred (or perhaps collected) the crysalids.  If you expect 
>500 individuals to emerge at the same time, you really will need a whole lot 
>more to meet your time window.  It is an iffy proposition, as you would need 
>to enclose those as the emerge and wait to build your population to the level 
>you need.  The breeders seem to have success with Monarchs more than anything 
>else, so, first you will need to figure out the species.  As most b-flies 
>emerge in the early morning hours, and may take time to begin movement, 
>coinciding with activity of other butterflies as well, probably the best time 
>is when the Sun is about 25% into the day.  That corresponds to about 10 AM 
>here, maybe a little earlier at midsummer in Estonia where you appear to have 
>your performance scheduled.  Regarding the emerged butterflies, they will be 
>much more docile than normal ones.  This is a double edged sword as they may 
>just hang their , though they won't go anywhere too quickly.
>
>The best idea might be to convince a local butterfly house, if there are any, 
>to allow you to do the performance in their installations.  Perhaps, you want 
>to cover strategic portions of your body with flower petals.  No harm in 
>adding some natural nectar and accompanying fragrances of favorite nectar 
>sources where you are.  Someone else can probably guide you better on your 
>local flora if you need help.  If you really want to get esoteric, you might 
>experiment with pheramones that are probably available in the scientific 
>community (a post-inquiry on this list would work), though you might get the 
>opposite effect desired among the male subsample of butterflies, as this 
>chemicals naturally tend to be used in relative quantity by the male, for 
>common species like the Monarch.
>
>Finally, a little behavioral study on your part could be helpful.  Some 
>butterflies are more nervous and active than others.  You can become 
>mesmerized in the field when a red admiral, lands on you and when normally 
>very nervous, suddenly forgets everything because of the sweat source he 
>finds on you.  You could touch the butterfly and it would keep clasping and 
>feeding.  Some blues walk a lot more and really can't seem to make up their 
>mind.
>
>This, done carefully, could be an interesting strategy, done in good taste, 
>to open a butterfly house, or shore up some business.  But if earning a 
>living is not your motive, perhaps making an ecological statement, I am sure 
>there are plently of serious reasons one could conjure to do this activity.  
>Sure sounds more fun than climbing a mountain with a portable paramedics and 
>oxygen to put a banner on top.  So I suppose maybe you could even get 
>satisfaction doing it because you may be the first to document it. It might 
>even be a new art form, who knows!  There is always Guiness' Book, so perhaps 
>if you do it for the recognition you could be the person with the most 
>butterflies feeding on the body simultaneously.
>
>Best luck,
>Doug Dawn 
>Monterrey, Mexico
>
>
>En un mensaje con fecha 04/11/2002 11:12:17 AM Central Daylight Time, 
>rjparcelles at yahoo.com escribe:
>
><< Asunto:   Re: Butterfly-performance
> Fecha: 04/11/2002 11:12:17 AM Central Daylight Time
> From:  rjparcelles at yahoo.com (Bob Parcelles,Jr.)
> Sender:    owner-leps-l at lists.yale.edu
> Reply-to:  rjparcelles at yahoo.com
> To:    hybrid9 at yahoo.com, leps-l at lists.yale.edu, 
>naturepotpourri at yahoogroups.com (Newsletter Nature Potpourri)
> 
> =================================================>
> --- "P.s" <hybrid9 at yahoo.com> wrote:
> > Dear all,
> > 
> > A strange request...In june I will be doing a performance, and it
> > involves the use of ca. 500 butterflies. In short, I will be
> > sitting
> > still, naked and covered in a sugarsolution, attracting hopefully
> > newly emerged butterflies brought for the purpose, to come and land
> > on
> > me since I am covered in sugarsolution. This will happen either
> > inside
> > or outside, not decided yet, however, it will only last about half
> > an
> > hour or so.
> > Now, I dont know how to go about it, in order not to inflict damage
> > either do the butterflies or the local habitat. I believe local
> > specimens is imperative, without knowing for sure (Estonia).
> > How can I do this in the best way?
> > 
> > Any help would be greatly appreciated,
> ======================
> Hmmmmmmm! Quite a performance! May I ask is this a public or a
> semi-private, more *discreet* performance. The reason I ask there are
> several variables.
> 
> 1) How much of you do you wish to cover? I for instance would need
> LARGE butterflies.
> 2) How LARGE are you? Are you male or female? Oh, I see from your e
> mail address, you are a "hybrid".
> 3) Do you have a permit for this?
> 4) Do you intend to wear this "buttefly shirt" for a while, since
> some species are more active than others? Are you going to be moving
> around? Why can you only last a half hour or so?
> 5) Is this exibition, excuse me ...performance, inside or outside? I
> ask this because outside can be risky. Does Estonia have large,
> painful ants? 
> 6) I know of breeders who can doe this but it takes time and money.
> Do you have much time? do you have any money? You know butterfies are
> not for free. I ask this because I have a fear that you may not be
> gainfully employed. I fear, quite frankly, that you may not have much
> time before the men in white suits with the nets might "collect" you
> and return you to your mental hospital. 
>  
> 
> I have I last question...Are you Rene Boutin? :)
> 
> rjp
> 
> =====
> Bob Parcelles, Jr
> Pinellas Park, FL
> RJP Associates, C2M-BWPTi
> rjparcelles at yahoo.com
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/naturepotpourri
> "Change your thoughts and you change your world."
> - Norman Vincent Peale
>  >>
>
> 
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