HUMMUS, Action, video. Art Boomerang Córdoba, Argentina. City of Arts. 2013.

Hummus is an intimate and provocative exploration of human emotions, where food and social interaction become mediums to explore desire, love, and vulnerability. In this action, a man wears red high heels while chopping onions in an enclosed space, surrounded by an audience. In Latin American culture, women are “allowed” to cry in public, while men are taught to contain their emotions. This stereotypical image of femininity associates crying with weakness. However, by introducing the red high heels, I shift attention to a representation of sexual liberation and female empowerment. The onions were used to prepare a soup that we shared in a space for encounter and dialogue, where attendees were invited to reflect on their own experiences of love and desire.

The tension between the hospitable and the hostile constitutes the central axis of this experience. On the one hand, the soup creates a sense of warmth and closeness, while on the other, the tears that flow from cutting onions create discomfort. This duality suggests that love can be both a refuge and a source of pain, and that intimacy in human relationships is often marked by ambivalence and sacrifice.