Velvet Water

In this short compilation, Chris Burden introduces and narrates selected clips from his public art performances including 'Shoot', 'Bed Piece', and 'Fire Rolls', among others.

November 19, 1971, F Space, Santa Ana, California: “At 7:45 p.m. I was shot in the left arm by a friend”.

In this narrative performance for video, Burden tells the story of his relationship with a truck named "Big Job." To relate his autobiographical monologue, he sits deadpan before the camera with moving images of the truck behind him. Writes Burden, "During a six-month period, while the artist wrestles with the problem of owning an antique 16,000 lb. freight-truck, Big Job becomes a metaphor for personal insanity. I talk about the 'curse of Big Job,' my foiled plans to transform the truck into a rolling communications command post or a traveling museum, and my difficulty in getting rid of the rig. A true story."

The TV Commercials 1973–1977 (1973–77/2000) is a compilation of four video works—TV Ad (1973), Poem for L.A. (1975), Chris Burden Promo (1976), and Full Financial Disclosure (1977)— that were aired as purchased spots on television between 1973 and 1977. Burden notes: “During the early ’70s I conceived a way to break the omnipotent stranglehold of the airwaves that broadcast television had. The solution was to simply purchase commercial advertising time and have the stations play my tapes along with their other commercials.”