Forget scripts. Reject calibration. Modern connection thrives when you treat every approach as a spontaneous happening—where awkwardness is aesthetic, vulnerability is virtuosity, and rejection is applause. Become a Fluxus artist of intimacy.
I. The Fluxus Manifesto for Dating
(Inspired by Yoko Ono, John Cage)
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ALL MOMENTS ARE STAGES: A subway platform, grocery aisle, or dating app is your theater.
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AUDIENCE = CO-CREATOR: Your “target” is your collaborator, not a conquest.
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MISTAKES ARE SCORES: A fumbled line? That’s the art.
II. The Fluxus Approach Toolkit
| Technique | Execution | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Instruction Art | Assign absurd collaborative tasks | “Draw my spirit animal on this napkin. I’ll draw yours.” |
| Deconstructed Opener | Break the fourth wall immediately | “This is where I’d use a pickup line. Instead: I’m nervous. Your turn.” |
| Found Poetry | Build dialogue from environmental fragments | [Points to graffiti] “‘EAT THE RICH’ + your cashmere scarf—irony or manifesto?” |
III. Digital Fluxus: App as Conceptual Canvas
Anti-Algorithm Tactics:
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Profile as Puzzle:
“Bio Haiku:
Lost keys often
Collects mismatched socks
Asks trees for advice” -
Message as Dadaist Prompt:
“Send me the worst selfie you own. I’ll caption it like a surrealist.”
IV. Rejection as Audience Participation
Fluxus Closure Ritual:
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Them: “Not interested.”
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You: [Bows solemnly] “This concludes tonight’s performance. You were sublime.”
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Physical Poetry: Leave a small “artifact” (a button, origami star) → “For your archives.”
V. First Date: Participatory Theater
Co-create immersive experiences:
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Guerrilla Kindness: Buy flowers, give them to strangers together.
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Urban Archaeology: “Excavate” street trash → build a sculpture.
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Silent Play: Act out a wordless story in a park.
“Dating isn’t a transaction—it’s a ‘Happening’ where strangers become temporary poets of possibility.”
Why This Transcends All Prior Frameworks
| Cultural Cartography | Fluxus Performance Art |
|---|---|
| Mapping emotional terrain | Shattering the map |
| Ethical exploration | Chaotic co-creation |
| Boundary archaeology | Collapsing boundaries |
Radical Innovations:
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Absurdist tasks as connection engines
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Found object dialogue (using environment as prop)
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Rejection theater (ritualized bow + artifact)
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Profile haiku replacing bios
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Guerrilla kindness dates
Fluxus Field Guide: Bookstore Case Study
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Set Stage: Tiptoe through philosophy section.
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Instruction Art:
Slip a note into their book:
*”Page 72, line 4 + your shoes = title of our indie band?”* -
Co-Create: When they laugh, whisper: “Encore? Coffee is our green room.”
Fluxus Principles in Practice
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EMBRACE THE RIDICULOUS
Awkward silence? Stare intensely:
“This quiet is… aggressively beige. Paint it with a secret?” -
EVERYONE IS A PERFORMER
To a barista:
“Assign us roles: am I tragic poet or rogue astronaut?” -
ARTIFACTS OVER OUTCOMES
Leave interactions with physical traces (doodles, shared playlists).
The Manifesto’s Heart
*”Approaching is not a ‘move’—
It’s handing a stranger a brush and whispering:
‘Let’s deface this moment with truth.’”
Try Tonight:
At a bar, approach with:
“I’m auditioning karaoke duets. Critique my whisper-scream?” → Hum “Total Eclipse of the Heart” off-key.
Would you like:
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A “Fluxus Prompt Generator” for openers?
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Safety considerations for absurdist approaches?
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Historical Fluxus art parallels (e.g., Yoko Ono’s Cut Piece)?
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