THE MUSEUM AS PERFORMANCE
from 19 SEP 2015 to 20 SEP 2015
ALEX CECCHETTI, ANASTASIA AX & LARS SILTBERG, ISABEL CARVALHO, KOVÁCS/O’DOHERTY, LORETO MARTÍNEZ TRONCOSO, MARIA HASSABI, MUSA PARADISIACA, NEW NOVETTA, VIVO.
First edition of a new field of programming of the Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art, entitled "Museum as Performance”, which consists of a programme of performances that will take place annually in its various spaces.This programme recognises the growing importance of the performing arts in the world of contemporary art and contributes to secure the history of Serralves as a pioneering museum in terms of transdisciplinary initiatives, characterised by constant intersections between the visual and performing arts, and the regular presence of leading international figures from the worlds of dance, the performing arts and contemporary music. The invitation to artists to inject life into the museum’s spaces also reflects Serralves’ interest in working with artists whose work responds to its unique architectural context and natural surroundings.This programme aims to reflect the diversity of current perspectives about current performing arts – from work on language, exploration of the relationship with theatre (through attention to the spoken word, and also incorporation of props), connections and tensions between physical action and drawing or sculpture, questioning of the autonomy of the impacts of a performance as an installation and memory and the long-term construction of relationships with the architectural and acoustical space.
"Museum as Performance” is curated by Cristina Grande, Ricardo Nicolau and Pedro Rocha - who are, respectively, the programmers of dance and performance, the visual arts and music of Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art.
Related Activities 19 SEP (SAT), 10h00-13h00 AND 17h00-20h00, PARK: Alex Cecchetti - Walking Backwards
Walking Backwards invites participants to literally walk backwards, "with their backs to the future and eyes fixed on the past”. As they move backwards, a story is whispered in their ear - associated to the history of the Park, and the plant species that they will find along the way. The story told during this performance has been written by the artist, based on reports from the gardeners that look after the Park.
19 SEP (Sat), 11h00-16h00, Museum Galleries: Kóvacs/O’Doherty - Increments
The duo Kata Kóvacs and Tom O'Doherty presents Increments - a durational performance that combines sound, space and movement.Over several hours - as they perform a series of repetitive actions - the two performers record and play back a recording of the sound of two drums. They alternate between adding new sounds and listening - between action and contemplation. Over time, they build up several layers of recordings of the drums and acoustic reflections of the sounds in the room. Their actions remain minimal and minimalistic but the sound grows in intensity and volume, as rhythmic fragments, acoustic traces and feedback are added over time.
19 SEP (SAT), 15h00-15h45, LIBRARY: VIVO & Loreto Martínez Troncoso - Ao vivo
VIVO is a collaboration between harp player, Angelica Salvi, and masseuse Emily King, who first met in Porto in 2013.The affinity between the two artists arose from the discovery of analogies and technical similarities between their two art forms, as well as their shared taste for free exploration. They began exploring poetic visions, combining artistic gestures and psycho-corporal intentions. In this manner, they have created compositions (and situations) dedicated to well-being and celebration of life in its rich complexity. VIVO, a work for Harp and Massage, is an original composition for four hands and a recipient. It consists of several parts and narratives, according to the various parts of the body. It has a specific structure, represented by a graphic score, while creating space for improvisation and adaptation to the singularities of each recipient. The recipient’s subtle reactions in real time - physical feedback – have an impact on the production of the work, in relation, for example, to time and / or intensity.VIVO was originally conceived for individual / private sessions. Nevertheless, this work has already been shown in public on two occasions: in a contemporary music workshop (as a proposal and subject matter) and in the framework of a performance with Loreto Martínez Troncoso, in which the main objective was to explore common devices. At Serralves the work will be entitled Ao vivo / Live.
19 SEP (SAT), 16H30-17H15, Museum Galleries: Maria Hassabi - Solo (2009)
In Solo (2009), Maria Hassabi performs with a Persian carpet, building her movements through investigation of a fluid sculptural process. The carpet - originally a kind of floor for this dance – becomes, alternately, a prop, an outer skin and an architectural construction. These changes reflect the negotiation of desire, in a dance routine that acquires visibility inside a specific framework and interacts with the defining sculptural setting. This desire manifests itself in the form of a variable temporal process, which is as complex and intricate as the carpet’s own multiple patterns. 19 SEP (SAT), 18H00-19H00, LIBRARY: Loreto Martínez Troncoso - À espera
Loreto Martínez Troncoso essentially uses the spoken word in her performance work, as a means of reflecting on the construction of identity. Exploring the unique atmosphere of Serralves Museum’s Library, where she will present her performance, the artist skilfully combines silence and the spoken word, in order to play with the audience’s expectations and make them reflect on the possible meanings of À espera / Waiting. Troncoso wrote about her project:
À ESPERA / WAITING" – Yes! But waiting for what?”For some time now, quite some time, I’ve been wondering: What are we anxious about? What makes us anxious? What drives us and moves us? We, you, me ...
Yes. I often feel that time passes by too quickly. On other occasions ... too slowly. (Time.)Sometimes I feel afraid. Fear that one day I will say to myself: - Now it's too late!
What makes me/you postpone things?(Time.)Waiting… (sitting, standing up, lying down or upright) which is also sperare.
(To be continued.)
19 SEP (SAT), 19H00-19H30, MUSEUM HALL: Anastasia Ax & Lars Siltberg - Exile
In collaboration with Lars Siltberg, Anastasia Ax presents a new tour of the project Exile. As with several other projects by this artist, this work implies several stages of construction, deconstruction or destruction and different forms of remodelling of used materials, in this case gypsum boards and various plaster elements. Ax’s explosive physical intervention also involves the use of black ink, an element which makes us think about the world of drawing and also invokes notions of poison, bile and melancholy. The sound of Ax’s actions is recorded by microphones and processed by Siltberg who thus amplifies and converts the acoustic environment of her actions.Ax talks about parallels between her work and the mandala and its symbolism, associated to the natural forces of construction and destruction, or to the Hindu god Shiva, who is also associated with war and fertility. However, in her work there is a clear feedback process, of circulation between the past, present and future, and reflection on the way that history is constructed, in particular through almost totemic re-use of several elements in different performances or an invitation to archaeologists and conservation professionals to record the "ruins" of the performance - to classify the remains and reconstitute the elements.
19 SEP (SAT), 20H00-21H00, Museum Galleries: Musa Paradisíaca - Cantina-Máquina
Musa Paradisiaca, an artistic project developed by Eduardo Guerra (Lisbon, 1986) and Miguel Ferrão (Lisbon, 1986), presents Canteen – Machine, an installation comprising two tables on wheels that present two ceramic objects which will be subsequently duplicated in bread and then eaten in two separate meals, in actions that evoke sacrificial rituals.The two ceramic objects are inspired by mechanical components from Joseph Sarcot’s steam engine (a model produced in the late nineteenth century) and their conversion into food serves Musa Paradisiaca’s proposal to ingest the thought, energy and movement that animates it.
20 SEP (SUN), 10h00-13h00 and 17h00-20h00, PARK: Alex Cecchetti - Walking Backwards
Walking Backwards invites participants to literally walk backwards, "with their backs to the future and eyes fixed on the past”. As they move backwards, a story is whispered in their ear - associated to the history of the Park, and the plant species that they will find along the way. The story told during this performance has been written by the artist, based on reports from the gardeners that look after the Park.
20 SEP (SUN), 11h00-16h00, Museum Galleries: Kovács/O’Doherty - Increments
The duo Kata Kóvacs and Tom O'Doherty presents Increments - a durational performance that combines sound, space and movement.Over several hours - as they perform a series of repetitive actions - the two performers record and play back a recording of the sound of two drums. They alternate between adding new sounds and listening - between action and contemplation. Over time, they build up several layers of recordings of the drums and acoustic reflections of the sounds in the room. Their actions remain minimal and minimalistic but the sound grows in intensity and volume, as rhythmic fragments, acoustic traces and feedback are added over time.
20 SEP (SUN), 15H00-16H00, LIBRARY: Alex Cecchetti - Mary & William
Mary & William is a story that is told as its internal structure is drawn on a wall. The drawings trace the performer's movements. The drawings and the choreography increase the story’s semiotic complexity and serve as mnemonic artefacts. 20 SEP (SUN), 16H00-17H00, Museum Galleries: Isabel Carvalho - T-A-R-T-A-R-U-G-A
In T-A-R-T-A-R-U-G-A (T-U-R-T-L-E) Isabel Carvalho (Porto, 1977) reads out an essay. The text has been written and read by the artist herself and is based on Karen Blixen’s Babette's Feast, more specifically on the relationship between three of its characters - Babette, Martine and Philippa - and addresses issues related to artistic activity. In Carvalho’s own words: "the limits of the imagination, artistic options, platitudes and extravagances". 20 SEP (SUN): New Noveta - CHVALIA ABUTAK AMETHYST
The work of the project New Noveta emerges as a reflection of the conformities that our bodies are subjected to on a daily basis and the manner in which our work cycles and behaviour must adapt to these structures in order to be accepted. New Noveta’s performances are created in response to these circumstances of restriction and repetitive behaviours. They create temporary environments in spaces, using various props and materials to build structures. They embrace the task of creating these structures in conformity with specific rituals that oblige their bodies to undertake seemingly unnecessary stress, while also undergoing a state of anxiety and tension.Each performance by New Noveta is different and adapted to the context in which it is staged. However, they often resort use bamboo canes and perishable foods, that they incorporate in their costumes and use original music and light that play a key role in the narrative of the process. 20 SEP (SUN), 18H00-18H45, Museum Galleries: Maria Hassabi - Solo
In Solo, Maria Hassabi performs with a Persian carpet, building her movements through investigation of a fluid sculptural process. The carpet - originally a kind of floor for this dance – becomes, alternately, a prop, an outer skin and an architectural construction. These changes reflect the negotiation of desire, in a dance routine that acquires visibility inside a specific framework and interacts with the defining sculptural setting. This desire manifests itself in the form of a variable temporal process, which is as complex and intricate as the carpet’s own multiple patterns. 20 SEP (SUN), 19H00-20H00, Museum Galleries: Musa paradisiaca - Cantina-Máquina
Musa Paradisiaca, an artistic project developed by Eduardo Guerra (Lisbon, 1986) and Miguel Ferrão (Lisbon, 1986), presents Canteen – Machine, an installation comprising two tables on wheels that present two ceramic objects which will be subsequently duplicated in bread and then eaten in two separate meals, in actions that evoke sacrificial rituals.The two ceramic objects are inspired by mechanical components from Joseph Sarcot’s steam engine (a model produced in the late nineteenth century) and their conversion into food serves Musa Paradisiaca’s proposal to ingest the thought, energy and movement that animates it.
About the artists Technical credits Alex CecchettiAlex Cecchetti is an artist, poet, choreographer. His artistic work - which includes choreography, dance, sculpture, video, performance and painting - is characterized by the production of specific situations or objects that can exist both inside and outside traditional exhibitions. He simultaneously manipulates objects, ideas and language. His work is focused on the construction of specific narratives that are experienced both mentally and physically by the audience. He has recently presented his works in the Serpentine Pavillion, London (2015); Kunstraum, London (2015); Théâtre de Gennevilliers (2015); Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2014); Nuvolari, Paris (2014); CAC Vilnius, Lithuania (2012) and the Jeu de Paume, Paris (2011).
Maria HassabiMaria Hassabi (Nicósia, Cyprus, 1973) is a New York-based choreographer and artist. Over the years she has developed a distinctive choreographic practice involved with the relation of the body to the image, defined by sculptural physicality and extended duration. In 2013 she represented Cyprus as part of The Cyprus and Lithuanian Pavilion at the 55th Venice Biennale Her works have already been presented in spaces such as The Kitchen (New York), PS1 MoMA (New York), CCS Bard Galleries at Bard College (Hudson, New York), Hammer Museum (Los Angeles), Ballroom Marfa (Texas), Portland Institute for Contemporary Art TBA Festival (Oregon), Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Herberger College of the Arts at Arizona State University, and in festivals such as Performa ’09 and ‘13, Fi:af’s Crossing the Line, in 2009 and 2011, and LMCC’s River to River Festival in 2012 and 2014.
Isabel CarvalhoThe straightforward reading of her texts, with a very low-key scenic character and using her own voice, placed at a distance and emulating a professional voice, trained for reading, makes Isabel Carvalho’s artistic practice - which also includes drawing, painting, sculpture, installation, publication of books and organisation of exhibitions - a very personal way of confronting the public with recurring issues involved in artistic production: the value of amateurism, the relationship between art and the economy, friendship, the dialectic between rigour and imagination. Some of these issues have been specifically addressed in several exhibitions organized by the artist in the exhibition space Navio Vazio, in Porto. Carvalho has also been responsible for extensive editorial production, after founding a publishing house, Braço de Ferro, which published dozens of books between 2008 and 2011, written by herself and by other authors, including artists, designers and curators. Her exhibitions and publishing activity have served as a laboratory where she has been able to explore possible transformations of publications into three-dimensional experiences.Her most recent exhibitions include Plateau singers merge languages together, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin (2013), FIGUR, Kantine Aqua Carre, Berlin (2013), Disruptive Patterns, Plots and Movements (Prelude), Altes Finanzant, Berlin (2013) and The principle of inertia, White Pavilion, City Museum, Lisbon (2012).
Musa paradisiacaRecent presentations of their work include Der Leone Have Sept Cabeças, CRAC Alsace, Altkirch, France (2014); EDP New Artists Prize, Gallery of the EDP Foundation, Porto (2013); How do you catch a fugitive? – Exhibition of conversable objects, CAM –Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon (2013) and Impossible tasks (The Servant of the Cenacle), Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2013).
Loreto Martínez TroncosoLoreto Martínez Troncoso was born in Vigo, Spain in 1978. She currently lives and works in Porto and Paris. In her artistic practice she primarily uses writing, the spoken word and silence, implemented in interventions in space and in the production of sound pieces. Her works have been presented in Les Laboratoires d’Aubervilliers (Paris), Centro Georges Pompidou (Paris), Arteleku (San Sebastian), Serralves Foundation (Porto), Bétonsalon (Paris), La Casa Encendida (Madrid), Palais de Tokyo (Paris). She has participated in the group exhibitions "El grito/The Cry "(Musac, León), "Une exposition parlée” (Jeu de Paume, Paris) "Los Veraneantes” ( MARCO, Vigo) and produced the solo exhibitions, "Entrar en la obra 1”, (MARCO, Vigo), "Ent(r)e” (Centro de Arte Contemporáneo de La Ferme du Buisson, Paris), "There is water in my eyes and ire in my heart, do you want a drink or a spark?” (Galería PM8, Vigo) and "…desde el amor” (Paradise, Nantes); Her creative process includes publishing books and writing stage plays, She is represented by Galeria PM8, Vigo.
Anastasia AxAnastasia Ax was born in Stockholm in 1979 and works and lives between Stockholm and Athens. She studied at the Royal Academy of Arts of Denmark, in Copenhagen, in the Photography School, University of Gothenburg, the Department of Fine Arts, Valand School, Gothenburg and the Royal University of Fine Arts in Stockholm. She recently organised exhibitions and performances in the Am Art Space (Shanghai), Göteborgs Konsthall (Gothenburg), Moderna Museet (Stockholm), Issue Project Room (New York), Kunsthalle Athena (Athens), among many other art centres and museums. In 2015, she received the Faber-Castell International Drawing Award.Lars Siltberg was born in 1968 in Stockholm, and continues to work from there. His video works, installations and sound works have been shown at events and institutions such as the 49th Venice Biennale, Miró Foundation (Barcelona), Moderna Museet (Stockholm), STUK Kunsthalle (Leuven), NGBK (Berlin), among others.
Kata Kovács Kata Kovács (Kecskemét, Hungary, 1981) is an artist and choreographer and Tom O'Doherty (Dublin, Ireland, 1978) is an artist and musician. They both live in Berlin and have worked together since 2011.Kóvacs / O'Doherty produce minimalist durational art installations with sound and movement that have been exhibited in venues such as Sophiensaele (Berlin), Ausland (Berlin) and the Bakelit Multi Art Center (Budapest), among others.
New NovetaNew Noveta is a collaborative project between the Swedish artist and performer Ellen Freed and the performance artist and musician Keira Fox, who is also known as a member of the projects, Maria & The Mirrors and Ashkelon. Their performances are multidisciplinary - combining sound production, props and costumes, as they build ephemeral installations, physical actions and dance. They recently presented their work in the context of the group exhibition "Apophenia", in Manchester, and in the ICA, London, included in the Re Materializing Feminism programme and opening of the project of Oreet Ashery for the fig-2 programme.
VIVOAngélica Salvi was born in 1981 in Salamanca (Spain) and currently lives in Porto. She completed her classical harp studies at the Madrid Royal Conservatory, studied Jazz in Arizona (USA) and has two Master’s degrees from the Hague Conservatory (Netherlands), specializing in contemporary and experimental music. She has been involved in contemporary, experimental and improvisation music projects. She coordinates the project Female Effects and is a member of the Vertixe Sonora Ensemble.Emily King lives between Porto and Paris. She studied massage art in the Biopulse school in France, where she obtained her professional certificate in 2008. She is a member of the training team of the Biopulse massage school in Paris and is currently studying traditional Chinese medicine - more specifically, massage and Qigong - at the European Institute of Traditional Chinese Studies of Porto.
Curated by: Cristina Grande, Ricardo Nicolau and Pedro RochaProduction: Ana Conde, Cristina Grande, Pedro Rocha, Ricardo NicolauProduction assistance: Clara Gómez GonzálezTechnical coordination and Sound: Nuno AragãoLighting: Rui BarbosaVideo and Cinema: Carla PintoThanks to: Paulo Pimenta, Rita Castro Neves, Afonso Vieira
First edition of a new field of programming of the Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art, entitled "Museum as Performance”, which consists of a programme of performances that will take place annually in its various spaces.This programme recognises the growing importance of the performing arts in the world of contemporary art and contributes to secure the history of Serralves as a pioneering museum in terms of transdisciplinary initiatives, characterised by constant intersections between the visual and performing arts, and the regular presence of leading international figures from the worlds of dance, the performing arts and contemporary music. The invitation to artists to inject life into the museum’s spaces also reflects Serralves’ interest in working with artists whose work responds to its unique architectural context and natural surroundings.This programme aims to reflect the diversity of current perspectives about current performing arts – from work on language, exploration of the relationship with theatre (through attention to the spoken word, and also incorporation of props), connections and tensions between physical action and drawing or sculpture, questioning of the autonomy of the impacts of a performance as an installation and memory and the long-term construction of relationships with the architectural and acoustical space.
"Museum as Performance” is curated by Cristina Grande, Ricardo Nicolau and Pedro Rocha - who are, respectively, the programmers of dance and performance, the visual arts and music of Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art.
Related Activities 19 SEP (SAT), 10h00-13h00 AND 17h00-20h00, PARK: Alex Cecchetti - Walking Backwards
Walking Backwards invites participants to literally walk backwards, "with their backs to the future and eyes fixed on the past”. As they move backwards, a story is whispered in their ear - associated to the history of the Park, and the plant species that they will find along the way. The story told during this performance has been written by the artist, based on reports from the gardeners that look after the Park.
19 SEP (Sat), 11h00-16h00, Museum Galleries: Kóvacs/O’Doherty - Increments
The duo Kata Kóvacs and Tom O'Doherty presents Increments - a durational performance that combines sound, space and movement.Over several hours - as they perform a series of repetitive actions - the two performers record and play back a recording of the sound of two drums. They alternate between adding new sounds and listening - between action and contemplation. Over time, they build up several layers of recordings of the drums and acoustic reflections of the sounds in the room. Their actions remain minimal and minimalistic but the sound grows in intensity and volume, as rhythmic fragments, acoustic traces and feedback are added over time.
19 SEP (SAT), 15h00-15h45, LIBRARY: VIVO & Loreto Martínez Troncoso - Ao vivo
VIVO is a collaboration between harp player, Angelica Salvi, and masseuse Emily King, who first met in Porto in 2013.The affinity between the two artists arose from the discovery of analogies and technical similarities between their two art forms, as well as their shared taste for free exploration. They began exploring poetic visions, combining artistic gestures and psycho-corporal intentions. In this manner, they have created compositions (and situations) dedicated to well-being and celebration of life in its rich complexity. VIVO, a work for Harp and Massage, is an original composition for four hands and a recipient. It consists of several parts and narratives, according to the various parts of the body. It has a specific structure, represented by a graphic score, while creating space for improvisation and adaptation to the singularities of each recipient. The recipient’s subtle reactions in real time - physical feedback – have an impact on the production of the work, in relation, for example, to time and / or intensity.VIVO was originally conceived for individual / private sessions. Nevertheless, this work has already been shown in public on two occasions: in a contemporary music workshop (as a proposal and subject matter) and in the framework of a performance with Loreto Martínez Troncoso, in which the main objective was to explore common devices. At Serralves the work will be entitled Ao vivo / Live.
19 SEP (SAT), 16H30-17H15, Museum Galleries: Maria Hassabi - Solo (2009)
In Solo (2009), Maria Hassabi performs with a Persian carpet, building her movements through investigation of a fluid sculptural process. The carpet - originally a kind of floor for this dance – becomes, alternately, a prop, an outer skin and an architectural construction. These changes reflect the negotiation of desire, in a dance routine that acquires visibility inside a specific framework and interacts with the defining sculptural setting. This desire manifests itself in the form of a variable temporal process, which is as complex and intricate as the carpet’s own multiple patterns. 19 SEP (SAT), 18H00-19H00, LIBRARY: Loreto Martínez Troncoso - À espera
Loreto Martínez Troncoso essentially uses the spoken word in her performance work, as a means of reflecting on the construction of identity. Exploring the unique atmosphere of Serralves Museum’s Library, where she will present her performance, the artist skilfully combines silence and the spoken word, in order to play with the audience’s expectations and make them reflect on the possible meanings of À espera / Waiting. Troncoso wrote about her project:
À ESPERA / WAITING" – Yes! But waiting for what?”For some time now, quite some time, I’ve been wondering: What are we anxious about? What makes us anxious? What drives us and moves us? We, you, me ...
Yes. I often feel that time passes by too quickly. On other occasions ... too slowly. (Time.)Sometimes I feel afraid. Fear that one day I will say to myself: - Now it's too late!
What makes me/you postpone things?(Time.)Waiting… (sitting, standing up, lying down or upright) which is also sperare.
(To be continued.)
19 SEP (SAT), 19H00-19H30, MUSEUM HALL: Anastasia Ax & Lars Siltberg - Exile
In collaboration with Lars Siltberg, Anastasia Ax presents a new tour of the project Exile. As with several other projects by this artist, this work implies several stages of construction, deconstruction or destruction and different forms of remodelling of used materials, in this case gypsum boards and various plaster elements. Ax’s explosive physical intervention also involves the use of black ink, an element which makes us think about the world of drawing and also invokes notions of poison, bile and melancholy. The sound of Ax’s actions is recorded by microphones and processed by Siltberg who thus amplifies and converts the acoustic environment of her actions.Ax talks about parallels between her work and the mandala and its symbolism, associated to the natural forces of construction and destruction, or to the Hindu god Shiva, who is also associated with war and fertility. However, in her work there is a clear feedback process, of circulation between the past, present and future, and reflection on the way that history is constructed, in particular through almost totemic re-use of several elements in different performances or an invitation to archaeologists and conservation professionals to record the "ruins" of the performance - to classify the remains and reconstitute the elements.
19 SEP (SAT), 20H00-21H00, Museum Galleries: Musa Paradisíaca - Cantina-Máquina
Musa Paradisiaca, an artistic project developed by Eduardo Guerra (Lisbon, 1986) and Miguel Ferrão (Lisbon, 1986), presents Canteen – Machine, an installation comprising two tables on wheels that present two ceramic objects which will be subsequently duplicated in bread and then eaten in two separate meals, in actions that evoke sacrificial rituals.The two ceramic objects are inspired by mechanical components from Joseph Sarcot’s steam engine (a model produced in the late nineteenth century) and their conversion into food serves Musa Paradisiaca’s proposal to ingest the thought, energy and movement that animates it.
20 SEP (SUN), 10h00-13h00 and 17h00-20h00, PARK: Alex Cecchetti - Walking Backwards
Walking Backwards invites participants to literally walk backwards, "with their backs to the future and eyes fixed on the past”. As they move backwards, a story is whispered in their ear - associated to the history of the Park, and the plant species that they will find along the way. The story told during this performance has been written by the artist, based on reports from the gardeners that look after the Park.
20 SEP (SUN), 11h00-16h00, Museum Galleries: Kovács/O’Doherty - Increments
The duo Kata Kóvacs and Tom O'Doherty presents Increments - a durational performance that combines sound, space and movement.Over several hours - as they perform a series of repetitive actions - the two performers record and play back a recording of the sound of two drums. They alternate between adding new sounds and listening - between action and contemplation. Over time, they build up several layers of recordings of the drums and acoustic reflections of the sounds in the room. Their actions remain minimal and minimalistic but the sound grows in intensity and volume, as rhythmic fragments, acoustic traces and feedback are added over time.
20 SEP (SUN), 15H00-16H00, LIBRARY: Alex Cecchetti - Mary & William
Mary & William is a story that is told as its internal structure is drawn on a wall. The drawings trace the performer's movements. The drawings and the choreography increase the story’s semiotic complexity and serve as mnemonic artefacts. 20 SEP (SUN), 16H00-17H00, Museum Galleries: Isabel Carvalho - T-A-R-T-A-R-U-G-A
In T-A-R-T-A-R-U-G-A (T-U-R-T-L-E) Isabel Carvalho (Porto, 1977) reads out an essay. The text has been written and read by the artist herself and is based on Karen Blixen’s Babette's Feast, more specifically on the relationship between three of its characters - Babette, Martine and Philippa - and addresses issues related to artistic activity. In Carvalho’s own words: "the limits of the imagination, artistic options, platitudes and extravagances". 20 SEP (SUN): New Noveta - CHVALIA ABUTAK AMETHYST
The work of the project New Noveta emerges as a reflection of the conformities that our bodies are subjected to on a daily basis and the manner in which our work cycles and behaviour must adapt to these structures in order to be accepted. New Noveta’s performances are created in response to these circumstances of restriction and repetitive behaviours. They create temporary environments in spaces, using various props and materials to build structures. They embrace the task of creating these structures in conformity with specific rituals that oblige their bodies to undertake seemingly unnecessary stress, while also undergoing a state of anxiety and tension.Each performance by New Noveta is different and adapted to the context in which it is staged. However, they often resort use bamboo canes and perishable foods, that they incorporate in their costumes and use original music and light that play a key role in the narrative of the process. 20 SEP (SUN), 18H00-18H45, Museum Galleries: Maria Hassabi - Solo
In Solo, Maria Hassabi performs with a Persian carpet, building her movements through investigation of a fluid sculptural process. The carpet - originally a kind of floor for this dance – becomes, alternately, a prop, an outer skin and an architectural construction. These changes reflect the negotiation of desire, in a dance routine that acquires visibility inside a specific framework and interacts with the defining sculptural setting. This desire manifests itself in the form of a variable temporal process, which is as complex and intricate as the carpet’s own multiple patterns. 20 SEP (SUN), 19H00-20H00, Museum Galleries: Musa paradisiaca - Cantina-Máquina
Musa Paradisiaca, an artistic project developed by Eduardo Guerra (Lisbon, 1986) and Miguel Ferrão (Lisbon, 1986), presents Canteen – Machine, an installation comprising two tables on wheels that present two ceramic objects which will be subsequently duplicated in bread and then eaten in two separate meals, in actions that evoke sacrificial rituals.The two ceramic objects are inspired by mechanical components from Joseph Sarcot’s steam engine (a model produced in the late nineteenth century) and their conversion into food serves Musa Paradisiaca’s proposal to ingest the thought, energy and movement that animates it.
About the artists Technical credits Alex CecchettiAlex Cecchetti is an artist, poet, choreographer. His artistic work - which includes choreography, dance, sculpture, video, performance and painting - is characterized by the production of specific situations or objects that can exist both inside and outside traditional exhibitions. He simultaneously manipulates objects, ideas and language. His work is focused on the construction of specific narratives that are experienced both mentally and physically by the audience. He has recently presented his works in the Serpentine Pavillion, London (2015); Kunstraum, London (2015); Théâtre de Gennevilliers (2015); Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2014); Nuvolari, Paris (2014); CAC Vilnius, Lithuania (2012) and the Jeu de Paume, Paris (2011).
Maria HassabiMaria Hassabi (Nicósia, Cyprus, 1973) is a New York-based choreographer and artist. Over the years she has developed a distinctive choreographic practice involved with the relation of the body to the image, defined by sculptural physicality and extended duration. In 2013 she represented Cyprus as part of The Cyprus and Lithuanian Pavilion at the 55th Venice Biennale Her works have already been presented in spaces such as The Kitchen (New York), PS1 MoMA (New York), CCS Bard Galleries at Bard College (Hudson, New York), Hammer Museum (Los Angeles), Ballroom Marfa (Texas), Portland Institute for Contemporary Art TBA Festival (Oregon), Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Herberger College of the Arts at Arizona State University, and in festivals such as Performa ’09 and ‘13, Fi:af’s Crossing the Line, in 2009 and 2011, and LMCC’s River to River Festival in 2012 and 2014.
Isabel CarvalhoThe straightforward reading of her texts, with a very low-key scenic character and using her own voice, placed at a distance and emulating a professional voice, trained for reading, makes Isabel Carvalho’s artistic practice - which also includes drawing, painting, sculpture, installation, publication of books and organisation of exhibitions - a very personal way of confronting the public with recurring issues involved in artistic production: the value of amateurism, the relationship between art and the economy, friendship, the dialectic between rigour and imagination. Some of these issues have been specifically addressed in several exhibitions organized by the artist in the exhibition space Navio Vazio, in Porto. Carvalho has also been responsible for extensive editorial production, after founding a publishing house, Braço de Ferro, which published dozens of books between 2008 and 2011, written by herself and by other authors, including artists, designers and curators. Her exhibitions and publishing activity have served as a laboratory where she has been able to explore possible transformations of publications into three-dimensional experiences.Her most recent exhibitions include Plateau singers merge languages together, Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin (2013), FIGUR, Kantine Aqua Carre, Berlin (2013), Disruptive Patterns, Plots and Movements (Prelude), Altes Finanzant, Berlin (2013) and The principle of inertia, White Pavilion, City Museum, Lisbon (2012).
Musa paradisiacaRecent presentations of their work include Der Leone Have Sept Cabeças, CRAC Alsace, Altkirch, France (2014); EDP New Artists Prize, Gallery of the EDP Foundation, Porto (2013); How do you catch a fugitive? – Exhibition of conversable objects, CAM –Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon (2013) and Impossible tasks (The Servant of the Cenacle), Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2013).
Loreto Martínez TroncosoLoreto Martínez Troncoso was born in Vigo, Spain in 1978. She currently lives and works in Porto and Paris. In her artistic practice she primarily uses writing, the spoken word and silence, implemented in interventions in space and in the production of sound pieces. Her works have been presented in Les Laboratoires d’Aubervilliers (Paris), Centro Georges Pompidou (Paris), Arteleku (San Sebastian), Serralves Foundation (Porto), Bétonsalon (Paris), La Casa Encendida (Madrid), Palais de Tokyo (Paris). She has participated in the group exhibitions "El grito/The Cry "(Musac, León), "Une exposition parlée” (Jeu de Paume, Paris) "Los Veraneantes” ( MARCO, Vigo) and produced the solo exhibitions, "Entrar en la obra 1”, (MARCO, Vigo), "Ent(r)e” (Centro de Arte Contemporáneo de La Ferme du Buisson, Paris), "There is water in my eyes and ire in my heart, do you want a drink or a spark?” (Galería PM8, Vigo) and "…desde el amor” (Paradise, Nantes); Her creative process includes publishing books and writing stage plays, She is represented by Galeria PM8, Vigo.
Anastasia AxAnastasia Ax was born in Stockholm in 1979 and works and lives between Stockholm and Athens. She studied at the Royal Academy of Arts of Denmark, in Copenhagen, in the Photography School, University of Gothenburg, the Department of Fine Arts, Valand School, Gothenburg and the Royal University of Fine Arts in Stockholm. She recently organised exhibitions and performances in the Am Art Space (Shanghai), Göteborgs Konsthall (Gothenburg), Moderna Museet (Stockholm), Issue Project Room (New York), Kunsthalle Athena (Athens), among many other art centres and museums. In 2015, she received the Faber-Castell International Drawing Award.Lars Siltberg was born in 1968 in Stockholm, and continues to work from there. His video works, installations and sound works have been shown at events and institutions such as the 49th Venice Biennale, Miró Foundation (Barcelona), Moderna Museet (Stockholm), STUK Kunsthalle (Leuven), NGBK (Berlin), among others.
Kata Kovács Kata Kovács (Kecskemét, Hungary, 1981) is an artist and choreographer and Tom O'Doherty (Dublin, Ireland, 1978) is an artist and musician. They both live in Berlin and have worked together since 2011.Kóvacs / O'Doherty produce minimalist durational art installations with sound and movement that have been exhibited in venues such as Sophiensaele (Berlin), Ausland (Berlin) and the Bakelit Multi Art Center (Budapest), among others.
New NovetaNew Noveta is a collaborative project between the Swedish artist and performer Ellen Freed and the performance artist and musician Keira Fox, who is also known as a member of the projects, Maria & The Mirrors and Ashkelon. Their performances are multidisciplinary - combining sound production, props and costumes, as they build ephemeral installations, physical actions and dance. They recently presented their work in the context of the group exhibition "Apophenia", in Manchester, and in the ICA, London, included in the Re Materializing Feminism programme and opening of the project of Oreet Ashery for the fig-2 programme.
VIVOAngélica Salvi was born in 1981 in Salamanca (Spain) and currently lives in Porto. She completed her classical harp studies at the Madrid Royal Conservatory, studied Jazz in Arizona (USA) and has two Master’s degrees from the Hague Conservatory (Netherlands), specializing in contemporary and experimental music. She has been involved in contemporary, experimental and improvisation music projects. She coordinates the project Female Effects and is a member of the Vertixe Sonora Ensemble.Emily King lives between Porto and Paris. She studied massage art in the Biopulse school in France, where she obtained her professional certificate in 2008. She is a member of the training team of the Biopulse massage school in Paris and is currently studying traditional Chinese medicine - more specifically, massage and Qigong - at the European Institute of Traditional Chinese Studies of Porto.
Curated by: Cristina Grande, Ricardo Nicolau and Pedro RochaProduction: Ana Conde, Cristina Grande, Pedro Rocha, Ricardo NicolauProduction assistance: Clara Gómez GonzálezTechnical coordination and Sound: Nuno AragãoLighting: Rui BarbosaVideo and Cinema: Carla PintoThanks to: Paulo Pimenta, Rita Castro Neves, Afonso Vieira
