Dunst is a

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...

performance art Performance art is an artwork or art exhibition created through actions executed by the artist or other participants. It may be witnessed live or through documentation, spontaneously developed or written, and is traditionally presented to a pu ...

and

activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...

group in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. The group began in 2001 as an informal

network Network, networking and networked may refer to: Science and technology * Network theory, the study of graphs as a representation of relations between discrete objects * Network science, an academic field that studies complex networks Mathematics ...

, but since 2004 it formally works as an association. Among its projects are art shows, dinner nights, performances, film nights, parties and political manifestations, as well as TV and radio shows. The name means ''

odour An odor (American English) or odour (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) is a smell or a scent caused by one or more volatilized ...

'' or ''reek'' in Danish.

Activities

During 2003, Dunst handled the Gay House at Christiania. Events and parties in the revived Gay House were popular among Copenhagen's gays, but Dunst allegedly received complaints and threats from Christiania residents and subsequently moved out of Christiania.

Style and context

Dunst is known for its bizarre and ironic

drag queen A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses Drag (entertainment), drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate Femininity, female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have ...

personalities (including such names as ''Ramona Macho, Miss Fish, Puta'' and ''Tove Hansen'') and music performers such as the band Nuclear Family. Having decidedly anti- establishment aims, the group has a humorous approach with a drag-

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

flavour. Public appearances have been referred in several mainstream media which would otherwise often ignore gay events. The attitude of Dunst appears more sarcastic and less militant than radical queer punk formations in other countries. It could be claimed that Dunst combines a

postmodern Postmodernism encompasses a variety of artistic, cultural, and philosophical movements that claim to mark a break from modernism. They have in common the conviction that it is no longer possible to rely upon previous ways of depicting the wo ...

appearance with a Danish tradition of humorous political

activism Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make Social change, changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from ...

. During the 1970s and 1980s, the theatre group Solvognen (''Sun Chariot,'' linked with Christiania), singers Troels Trier and Rebecca Brüel, and the squatter performance network Kulørte Klat ''("Coloured Blob")'' made imaginative and ironic performances, as well as

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

groups of ''rødstrømper'' (literally "

Redstockings Redstockings, also known as Redstockings of the Women's Liberation Movement, is a radical feminist nonprofit that was founded in January 1969 in New York City, whose goal is "To Defend and Advance the Women's Liberation Agenda". The group's name ...

").

Manifesto

The Dunst website proclaims its "Manifesto" as follows:The Dunst Manifesto ~ Dunst.dk
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1. dunst is for all the cute ones. 2. dunst is the culture bearing layer of our gender political confusement. 3. dunst has provocation as a work tool and not as a goal in itself. 4. dunst makes contrasts strong. 5. dunst is for all who in a self performance will go beyond their own modesty. 6. dunst is the low life that others won't have an opinion about. 7. dunst is the sanctuary for those who come from a male or female
chauvinist Chauvinism ( ) is the unreasonable belief in the superiority or dominance of one's own group or people, who are seen as strong and virtuous, while others are considered weak, unworthy, or inferior. The ''Encyclopaedia Britannica'' describes it ...
upbringing. 8. dunst crosses the gender specific habits and limits you keep in your everyday life. 9. dunst is for those who think they and others should be culturally carpet bombed. 10. dunst is always in change.

References

{{reflist

External links

Dunst website
LGBTQ organizations based in Denmark Culture jamming Performance artist collectives Political activism Queercore DIY culture LGBTQ culture in Copenhagen