BACHELOR SOCIETY

Extreme Unction II
Gallery 101
Ottawa, Canada

Installation | 1996
Material: Found mattresses and box springs, bed sheets silk screened with information on HIV/AIDS opportunistic diseases, house paint, light bulbs, handmade polyester pillowcases with empty soda cans, used knap sacks, autumn leaves, used baseball caps, stacks of newspaper published by homeless organization, hypodermic needles and cleaning supplies, condoms, used Winter jacket and gloves

first image | installation view
Bachelor Society was an installation that addressed marginalized communities affected by the HIV epidemic.

Fact sheets on opportunistic diseases distributed by Gay Men’s Health Crisis was silk screened onto bed sheets. Found mattresses were made up with these sheets and translucent pillowcases stuffed with material scavenged from the streets or associated with the homeless population.

second image | detail
The mattress arrangement evoked communal living, i.e., dormitories, shelters, immigrant housing, etc.

third image | detail
One of the first groups of Chinese to arrive in the United States was the laborer. Because federal legislations specifically targeted against the Chinese, most of their rights were denied, They were not permitted to own property nor bring over wives or families. The surplus of single men formed a visible "bachelor society" within the Chinatown community.