Emily Vey Duke & Cooper Battersby, Canada Bad Ideas for Paradise 2002, Canada 20’00’’

"There is no such thing as self-esteem. Self-esteem as a construct is illogical and contradictory, so its frequent deployment as the lynchpin of New Age discourse seems to me satisfyingly appropriate. I don't trust anyone who doesn't have frequent bouts of self-loathing. There is something truly monstrous about the self-righteous. Eating a well-balanced diet is a horrible act of aggression. Beauty is independent of taste; the sublime only works for suckers. Whenever I laugh I feel guilty."

Cooper Battersby

b. 1971, Penticton British Columbia, Canada

Emily Vey Duke

b. 1972, Halifax Nova Scotia, Canada They have been working collaboratively since June 1994. They work in printed matter, installation, curation and sound, but their primary practice is the production of single-channel video. Their work has been exhibited in galleries and at festivals in North and South America and throughout Europe and they won several prizes.