Pacing, Francis Alys
"Every day I would go out and walk, pacing the grid of Manhattan. There would be no destination, just the walking and the counting. North to South and South to West, West to East and East to South, South to North and North to West, West to South and South to East, East to West and West to East."
The first page reads "116,822 Steps (for Elliot) N.Y.C. Sept-Dec 2001". Throughout the book, Alys notes his number of steps in each direction and total. Eventually, he stops marking his path on the grid and only notes the number of steps and the direction (i.e. 89N/128W . . . )
This is an example of a book giving meaning to the performance because, by recording his walks, he consecrates them - he gives them purpose, and dedicates them to someone specifically.