Raluca what, how, why: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 09:50, 2 October 2014

How many matches (it takes to measure a prison) (2013)

During a collaborative residence in Krems, Austria, we measured the length of its biggest prison by using matches as measuring instruments.

We worked in teams of 2, starting the performance from the two control towers of the prison located on opposing sides of the building. One person lined up the matches, while the person behind collected them. We did this continuously for 9 hours, until one team met the other one. In total, we used 22 500 matches.

Our aim was to ponder the relationship between the two realities –the noticeable walls and what they conceal. The prison, located in the city centre, was hidden behind an old church façade which impeded tourists from actually noticing it. Also, we were not allowed to enter the prison. Thus, the performance was part of an effort to map a space that we did not have access to and to draw attention towards it. The endurance also matched the repetitive dull work that inmates are usually required to do.

The eyes of Nicolae Botgros (2013)

Last summer, on my way to work, I saw daily the same 39 posters of Nicolae Botgros, a traditional Romanian folklore singer. They became so familiar, as opposed to his songs, that I started to imagine these poster personas as being real. One day I stopped and mapped their memory in that particular time and space.

For each of them, I placed the camera viewfinder on his eyes and shot 36 frames for about one minute. Then I recreated filmstrips for each poster to resemble the ones I get when developing 35 mm film.

My attempt was to link my personal memory - selective, subjective and temporary - to the digital one - general, (apparently) objective and ever-lasting. I also wanted to overcome my daily routine by understanding the different kinds of subjectivities that can co-exist in the same place.

AA+: Aerobic meets Artist (2014)

The project involved individual, personalized, approx. one hour long aerobic sessions for artists, developed according to each person’s personality. The sessions were held in a gym in Bucharest and also during Homefest, a festival taking place in people’s houses.

As any artist could book a session, the program was personalized according to the answers provided to an online form that contained questions about their practice, their preferences and everyday struggles as artists. The sessions had a loose script and were mostly based on improvisation, reciprocity, collaboration, exchange and re-interpretation. However, the development of each session was directly influenced by the artist’s approach and his/her level of involvement.

These encounters represented a leave from the comfort zone and a physical interaction between artists, outside the virtual world or the gallery space. They also enforced a positive attitude and more confidence in oneself through direct physical exercise.

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-'''How many matches (it takes to measure a prison)'''
+'''How many matches (it takes to measure a prison)''' (2013)
-What
+During a collaborative residence in Krems, Austria, we measured the length of its biggest prison by using matches as measuring instruments.
-Together with 3 other artists, I measured the length of the biggest prison in Austria which is located in Krems. We used matches as measuring instruments. After finishing the measurement, which took us 9 hours, we placed the matches illegally on the floor of the art gallery located right across the prison.
-How
+We worked in teams of 2, starting the performance from the two control towers of the prison located on opposing sides of the building. One person lined up the matches, while the person behind collected them. We did this continuously for 9 hours, until one team met the other one. In total, we used 22 500 matches.
-We worked in teams of 2 people, both teams starting from the control towers of the prison that were placed in opposing sides of the prison. One person lined up the matches, while the person behind collected the matches. We did this continuously until one team met the other one.
-Why
+Our aim was to ponder the relationship between the two realities –the noticeable walls and what they conceal. The prison, located in the city centre, was hidden behind an old church façade which impeded tourists from actually noticing it. Also, we were not allowed to enter the prison. Thus, the performance was part of an effort to map a space that we did not have access to and to draw attention towards it. The endurance also matched the repetitive dull work that inmates are usually required to do.
-Our aim was to appropriate the prison’s surroundings with a worldwide, small-scale unit of measurement. The matches also pondered on the relationship between the two realities –the noticeable walls and what they conceal, as the prison was hidden under an old church façade. The performance was part of an effort to map a space that we did not have access to and to draw attention towards it. The endurance also matched the repetitive dull work that inmates are usually required to do.
+'''The eyes of Nicolae Botgros''' (2013)
-'''The eyes of Nicolae Botgros'''
+Last summer, on my way to work, I saw daily the same 39 posters of Nicolae Botgros, a traditional Romanian folklore singer. They became so familiar, as opposed to his songs, that I started to imagine these poster personas as being real. One day I stopped and mapped their memory in that particular time and space.
-What
+For each of them, I placed the camera viewfinder on his eyes and shot 36 frames for about one minute. Then I recreated filmstrips for each poster to resemble the ones I get when developing 35 mm film.
-On my back to work, I saw daily the same 39 posters of Nicolae Botgros, a traditional Romanian folklore singer. One day, I stopped and mapped all these posters’ memory, trying to see what his eyes would see in that particular time and space.
-How
+My attempt was to link my personal memory - selective, subjective and temporary - to the digital one - general, (apparently) objective and ever-lasting. I also wanted to overcome my daily routine by understanding the different kinds of subjectivities that can co-exist in the same place.
-I placed the camera viewfinder on his eyes and shot 36 frames. Then, using Photoshop, I recreated filmstrips of 36 frames for every poster eyes.
-Why
-The project deals with the creation and appropriation of the virtual memory of the poster personas of Nicolae Botgros in a particular time and place. It also opposes and links two types of memory: the human one, selective, subjective and temporary, and the digital one, general, objective and (apparently) ever-lasting.
+'''AA+: Aerobic meets Artist''' (2014)
-'''AA+: Aerobic meets Artist'''
+The project involved individual, personalized, approx. one hour long aerobic sessions for artists, developed according to each person’s personality. The sessions were held in a gym in Bucharest and also during Homefest, a festival taking place in people’s houses.
-What
+As any artist could book a session, the program was personalized according to the answers provided to an online form that contained questions about their practice, their preferences and everyday struggles as artists. The sessions had a loose script and were mostly based on improvisation, reciprocity, collaboration, exchange and re-interpretation. However, the development of each session was directly influenced by the artist’s approach and his/her level of involvement.
-For a couple of months, I held individual, personalized, approx. one hour long aerobic sessions for artists. The sessions took place in a gym in Bucharest and took various shapes, depending on each person’s personality.
-How
+These encounters represented a leave from the comfort zone and a physical interaction between artists, outside the virtual world or the gallery space. They also enforced a positive attitude and more confidence in oneself through direct physical exercise.
-The sessions were personalized according to the answers provided by the artists using an online form. The questions mostly regarded their practice, their preferences and everyday struggles. The exercises were based on reciprocity, collaboration, exchange and re-interpretation, sometimes even re-enactment. However, the development of each session was directly influenced by the artist’s approach towards it.
-Why
-The aerobic session represented a leave from the comfort zone and a physical interaction and collaboration among artists, outside the virtual world or the gallery space. It also enforced a positive attitude and more confidence in oneself through the physical effort and meditative parts. At the same time, some answers provided a means for analyzing the art context and what it implies to be part of it.