Acconci's "Theme Song" and "Undertone"

In both Vito Acconci's "Theme Song" and "Undertone," Acconci creates highly sexual situations to invade the comfort zone of the viewer. I was immediately uncomfortable in both videos, my discomfort only increasing as the videos progressed. In "Theme Song" it feels as if Acconci is accosting me, murmuring seductive things and shifting his body repeatedly as if tempting the viewer. this invasion of personal space is immediate and probing, as if he is comparing his invasion to the impact and invasion that television has unwittingly on the lives of the viewer. Because television does not evoke such a visceral response, its effects can go easily unnoticed but this confrontation makes the impact and personal position of the television real and very obvious.

Acconci's "Undertone" was slightly less accosting but still highly uncomfortable. Describing things that he wishes a girl was doing to him under the table, a place that remains hidden and invisible from the viewer, creates another sexually confrontational situation. Unsure whether to be disgusted or feel sorry for this man on the screen, his image is eerily absorbing, as if this is an invasion of his private moments rather than his invasion of ours.