Community toothbrush

I have become interested in the idea of tools to build community. To reiterate, many of my friendships have been built through the act of the working side by side. Additionally, through the exploration of tools my attention has been drawn more upon the tools that I use throughout my daily life. Brushing ones teeth is a Fluxus performance. I wanted to build upon this idea by raising issues of trust and dependence upon others to accomplish a simple everyday task.

In designing this tool I first measured my arm. I stand 6'2", there for I have a wingspan of 6'2". I wanted the handle or the grip of this tool to be long enough that the average person could not hold the handle and brush one's own teeth. Also, I would need to consider that an individual could "cheat" and “choke up” on the tool to brush one's own teeth. Choke up is a term taken from baseball. One raises their hands closer to the ball hitting end of the bat to make it easier to handle the weight of the bat. To hinder the operator from doing this I welded used rusty nails between the tools handle and toothbrush. Almost like a homemade barbwire. Making the act of brushing one's teeth an act dependant upon someone that you trust.

At this point, I think it would not only be wise for documentation reasons, but also a learning experience to actually act out the performance aspect of this piece. It would probably raise issues that I have not thought of.