The video „Shoe Test #2“ (2011) is part of a larger body of proposed work by the british-based artist George Saxon that uses moving image, text, duration and performance to explore extreme endurance of forced labour at Sachsenhausen concentration camp.
How do I as the child of a survivor continue to remember, translate and begin the process of ‚liberation‘, through the ritual re-visiting of this site and its narratives, current manifestations of memory, the wider interpretive translation of inter-generational trauma and its potential legacy for future generations?
„Shoe Test #2“ is the second in a series of tests which explore a forced, day long march of 40 kilometres based on the testimonies of George Saxon’s father, who was subjected to the so-called shoe testing track as part of a punishment unit at Sachsenhausen. The track was designed to examine the durability of various types of materials for military footwear. George Saxon’s father was forced to carry a pack of bricks, 30 kilos in weight for the duration of this interminable trudge.
„Shoe Test #2“ is the prelude and preparation to the walk/run on the shoe test track, where a series of actions are interspersed with cynical texts (attributed to Heinrich Himmler) which allude to the notion of moral excellence, conformity and conduct. The resulting moving image based work reveals the interpretive ‚re-enactment‘ of humiliation and submission.
