Tegretol

Janet Biggs, 2003
Two-channel SD video installation with sound
Running time 2:13

Tegretol takes its title from the anticonvulsant drug of the same name. The medication, which is sometimes used to treat adolescent males who exhibit extreme aggression, works by decreasing the nerve impulses that cause seizures and pain. In this multiple-projection piece, young male wrestlers confront each other in measured feints and parries. The high-key colors of the wrestler’s uniforms, protective gear, and the mats beneath them suggest the ritualized pageantry of formal competition. The initial staccato rhythm of the throws and slow falls builds to a crescendo of violent body slams to the mat. Suddenly, the piece goes dark and silent. This progression from focused energy to harsh eruption, and finally chaos and loss of control signifies the links and disconnects of obsession and aggression within societal structures. Tegretol examines the desire to transcend physical and social constraints which drives some to search for impossible perfection and others to fight against it.