Real Life
WORDS: PATRICK CASH
PERFORMING THE SISSY’S PROGRESS
HOW NANDO MESSIAS TRANSFORMED HATE INTO SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL
“My work has become much more political since suffering the attack,” says Brazilian performance artist Nando Messias, clad in a queer femme chic of understated eyeliner and magenta lipstick. The 42-year-old’s demure femininity doesn’t cause a ruffle in the cosmopolitan cafe of Foyles bookshop.
“I was coming back from a show in the summer of 2005, a week after the London bombings. It was warm and still light out. My house is at the back of Whitechapel Art Gallery: one end of the street is busy, but the other is quieter and dodgy. That day I was feeling more confident so I took the shortcut. As soon as I turned onto the street I came upon a gang of eight young men. Taking the shortcut was my mistake. There was no turning back.