Sitting and Smiling: Difference between revisions
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One reviewer commented that "One of the strangest aspects of this project is its apparent lack of explanation."<ref>{{cite web|last1=Rutherford-Morrison|first1=Lara|title=This Man Sits, Smiles, And Stares At You For Four Hours, Creating A Black Hole Of Existential Angst (Enjoy!) |url=https://www.bustle.com/articles/59607-this-man-sits-smiles-and-stares-at-you-for-four-hours-creating-a-black-hole-of|accessdate=17 February 2017|date=20 January 2015}}</ref> |
One reviewer commented that "One of the strangest aspects of this project is its apparent lack of explanation."<ref>{{cite web|last1=Rutherford-Morrison|first1=Lara|title=This Man Sits, Smiles, And Stares At You For Four Hours, Creating A Black Hole Of Existential Angst (Enjoy!) |url=https://www.bustle.com/articles/59607-this-man-sits-smiles-and-stares-at-you-for-four-hours-creating-a-black-hole-of|accessdate=17 February 2017|date=20 January 2015}}</ref> |
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A [[Burglary|burglar]] broke into Bennett's home by |
A [[Burglary|burglar]] broke into Bennett's home by kicking his door down during one performance. Bennett resolved to continue the performance. The burglar came to Bennett's room and saw him sitting and smiling, and promptly left the house. <ref name="Sumitra 2015">{{cite web|author1=Sumitra|title=This Guy Is Filming Himself Just Sitting and Smiling for Four Hours a Day |url=http://www.odditycentral.com/news/for-some-reason-this-guy-is-filming-himself-just-sitting-and-smiling-for-four-hours-a-day.html|website=Oddity Central|accessdate=17 February 2017|date=26 January 2015}}</ref> |
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Other reviewers said that the performance was "bizarre",<ref>{{cite web|last1=Tickle|first1=Glen|title=Artist Benjamin Bennett Films Himself Sitting and Smiling for Hours at a Time in His Series ‘Sitting and Smiling’|url=http://laughingsquid.com/artist-benjamin-bennett-films-himself-sitting-and-smiling-for-hours-at-a-time-in-his-series-sitting-and-smiling/|website=Laughing Squid|accessdate=17 February 2017|date=20 January 2015}}</ref> "tip of the creepy iceberg",<ref>{{cite web|last1=Parra|first1=Sara|title=Sitting and Smiling is Just the Tip of the Creepy Internet Iceberg |url=http://newmediarockstars.com/2015/01/sitting-and-smiling-is-just-the-tip-of-the-creepy-internet-iceberg/|website=New Media Rockstars|date=19 January 2015}}</ref> and "bonkers".<ref>{{cite web|last1=Reilly|first1=Nicholas|title=This man is filming himself smiling for four hours a day|url=http://metro.co.uk/2015/01/23/this-man-is-filming-himself-smiling-for-four-hours-a-day-5033965/|website=Metro|date=23 January 2015}}</ref> |
Other reviewers said that the performance was "bizarre",<ref>{{cite web|last1=Tickle|first1=Glen|title=Artist Benjamin Bennett Films Himself Sitting and Smiling for Hours at a Time in His Series ‘Sitting and Smiling’|url=http://laughingsquid.com/artist-benjamin-bennett-films-himself-sitting-and-smiling-for-hours-at-a-time-in-his-series-sitting-and-smiling/|website=Laughing Squid|accessdate=17 February 2017|date=20 January 2015}}</ref> "tip of the creepy iceberg",<ref>{{cite web|last1=Parra|first1=Sara|title=Sitting and Smiling is Just the Tip of the Creepy Internet Iceberg |url=http://newmediarockstars.com/2015/01/sitting-and-smiling-is-just-the-tip-of-the-creepy-internet-iceberg/|website=New Media Rockstars|date=19 January 2015}}</ref> and "bonkers".<ref>{{cite web|last1=Reilly|first1=Nicholas|title=This man is filming himself smiling for four hours a day|url=http://metro.co.uk/2015/01/23/this-man-is-filming-himself-smiling-for-four-hours-a-day-5033965/|website=Metro|date=23 January 2015}}</ref> |
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Revision as of 17:19, 5 September 2018
"There isn't really a purpose. My inbox is full of people asking me why I'm doing this, but I don't think that question is really applicable to this type of activity."
Benjamin Bennett, 2015 interview with Vice Media[1]
Sitting and Smiling is an endurance art performance by Benjamin Bennett. In a typical performance, Bennett looks into a video camera which is recording him while sitting and smiling motionless for four hours.
Bennett uploaded his first "Sitting and Smiling" video on July 28, 2014.[2] Over the next years he uploaded similar videos at a rate of about one per week.[2] Currently, his videos have earned more than 14.3 million views with over 185 thousand subscribers.[3]
Bennett cites Claire Bishop's 2012 Artificial Hells: Participatory Art and the Politics of Spectatorship as an inspiration for his art.[1]
Critical response
One reviewer commented that "One of the strangest aspects of this project is its apparent lack of explanation."[4]
A burglar broke into Bennett's home by kicking his door down during one performance. Bennett resolved to continue the performance. The burglar came to Bennett's room and saw him sitting and smiling, and promptly left the house. [5]
Other reviewers said that the performance was "bizarre",[6] "tip of the creepy iceberg",[7] and "bonkers".[8]
Bennett has received praise for preserving the mystery of his art by refusing any opportunity for interviews on the popular television show Tosh.0.[2]
Incidents on stream
As previously mentioned, during the fifth installment of his stream, a burglar broke into his house. He broke one of the windows, went down the stairs and then he opened the door to his room. The thief then said "Hello?" and quickly left. The incident generated attention online and the video currently has over 2 million views.[5][9]
In a separate incident in his 52nd livestream, Benjamin clearly urinates himself, with a wet puddle seeping out from under him and gradually evaporating over the remainder of the footage. He never acknowledges this or breaks his composure and continues to sit and smile to the camera.[10]
References
- ^ a b Suzdaltsev, Jules (22 January 2015). "This Guy Is Filming Himself Sitting and Smiling for Four Hours a Day". Vice. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
- ^ a b c Putney, Dean (7 October 2015). "Internet man sits and smiles at camera for hundreds of hours". Boing Boing. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
- ^ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqW54i24PGw1q7IxciRmgTA/about
- ^ Rutherford-Morrison, Lara (20 January 2015). "This Man Sits, Smiles, And Stares At You For Four Hours, Creating A Black Hole Of Existential Angst (Enjoy!)". Retrieved 17 February 2017.
- ^ a b Sumitra (26 January 2015). "This Guy Is Filming Himself Just Sitting and Smiling for Four Hours a Day". Oddity Central. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
- ^ Tickle, Glen (20 January 2015). "Artist Benjamin Bennett Films Himself Sitting and Smiling for Hours at a Time in His Series 'Sitting and Smiling'". Laughing Squid. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
- ^ Parra, Sara (19 January 2015). "Sitting and Smiling is Just the Tip of the Creepy Internet Iceberg". New Media Rockstars.
- ^ Reilly, Nicholas (23 January 2015). "This man is filming himself smiling for four hours a day". Metro.
- ^ "Sitting and Smiling #5". YouTube. Benjamin Bennett. 25 November 2014. Event occurs at 2:36:30. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|website=(help) - ^ "Sitting and Smiling #52". YouTube. Benjamin Bennett. 20 February 2015. Event occurs at 2:47:00. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
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