qarrtsiluni

i.
Painter 1: Let me paint over this part.
Painter 2: But that’s my signature.

ii.
Woman: Will you not sit down for just ten minutes? Ten minutes is all I need.
Man: I gave you ten hours yesterday. You know we have run dry.
Woman: I will dig a well deep into your skull.
Man: My brains are dust.
Woman: Then we will excavate the marrow of your bones.

by Tammy Ho Lai-ming and Reid Mitchell

Download the MP3 (reading by Reid)

Process notes

Tammy writes:
“Variations on a Theme” is composed of two very short and quirky sections. They are in fact variations of the same theme: intensive collaboration going sour. The first part features two painters working on a painting together. The second part is more ambiguous on what the man and the woman are collaborating; the explicit sexual language adds a gothic atmosphere to the piece.

For additional process notes, see “Debating Love.”