Lawrence.com

As the poet J. Geils once immortally intoned, "Love stinks." It's this immutable truism that lies at the blackened and oozing heart of The Ex-Show. It's a multimedia art exhibit that invites attendees to whimsically wallow in the filth of their own ex-relationships by providing a venue to purge mixtapes and other detritus from former lovers. Throw in activities like "Pin the Tail on the Ex," and organizers hope this interactive invective forum will help purge the soul. Curator Jill Ensley (who also blogs on lawrence.com) joined us to talk about The Ex-Show, colons, and why happy people suck.

lawrence.com: The Ex-Show-please tell me that this has something to do with recreational dance drugs from the '90s.

Ensley: Oh, I wish.

Dammit!

Yeah, sorry.

Well, all of my questions were Ecstasy-related. We'll just wing it. What is the Ex-Show?

It's not triple-X, either.

So it's not a porno revue?

No, it's not a "SEx-Show," it's an "Ex-Show." It's a show dedicated to our exes. Artwork made in response to ex-boyfriends or ex-girlfriends, things like that.

What sort of pieces have you accumulated so far?

We have everything. We'll hopefully have some performance art coming through: poetry readings, which are always fun; paintings; sculpture; digital video projections.

Is Valentine's Day the worst holiday, or is it neck and neck with World Leprosy Day?

Oh, that's close. It's up there.

Are you expecting any bonfires or effigies of exes being mutilated?

We have two rules-no fights, no fires. There will be a sign. Take it outside. I don't care what you do out there.

You're inviting people to bring ex memorabilia, though. Can we at least smash it, Gallagher-style, with a big hammer?

I'm not saying there won't be a fire-it'll just be outside. There might be an "ex pit" where you can burn stuff.

"Ex Pit"-sounds like something you'd find on American Gladiators. Is this going to be a cathartic experience for those of us who are recently single and embittered husks of our former selves?

Yes, this is for you. Hopefully there will be a little spiritual healing-a little cleansing.

Sort of like Colon Cleanse for the heart?

Why does everybody go to the colon whenever I say that?

Because the heart is also full of shit, as a French existentialist might say. Although the theme of the Ex-Show isn't just about venomous rage, right?

Yeah. I mean, "ex" can mean anything-from anger and bitterness, to nostalgia, to appreciation. Sometimes people are still good friends when they break up.

I don't get those people.

I don't either, but they're out there. It's a universal topic and I figured that everybody's probably got some connection with an ex.

While putting the show together, have you stumbled across any truly messed up break-up stories?

Not really. I'm more interested in Lawrence connections. We were thinking about doing a "Lawrence Family Tree," but figured it might get a little awkward.

"Connections" is a very polite way of saying "hook-ups." Man, that would be a tree with no branches.

It would be one big circle. Someone would end up looking really bad, so we nixed it. It would have been a great sociological study, though.

We'll turn this into "Love Line," now-what's your personal advice for going through a break-up and having to interact with the ex afterwards?

Move. The only helpful thing I've ever heard, really, is that it takes exactly as long as the relationship lasted to get over it-which is tough if you've been in a long relationship.

The Ex-Show sounds like a perfect Valentine's Day activity for us lonely hearts. Actually, it sounds like it might also be a fun activity for people in relationships-they can feel superior to all of the single people.

Right, they can walk around and be disgustingly in love. That would be great-it would fuel the bitterness. This could be a great starting point for more art. We also want people to bring mixtapes and play them-that will be humorous and fun. There will be games, too. I'm thinking "Pin the Blame on the Ex," like "Pin the Tail on the Donkey," where you write down what you would have wanted to say to your ex and pin it on them.

Way to turn tragedy and heartbreak into "Double Dare"! Is there going to be a slime pit?

We should just have a big bucket of gross, or maybe an obstacle course. Mark Summers might be there-I think he needs the work. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

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