If we understand performance as inherently interdisciplinary, an art that ranges from live forms to film and installations, we have to understand production as a complex endeavour facing many challenges. The production of performative practices is a critical consideration of space, time, and the body (in all of its forms). At the same time, it raises a series of economic and contractual challenges, especially related to its distribution. This meeting aims to address the complexities of commissioning of performative practices and their manifestation in video art.
Antonia Blocker is a London-based curator predominantly concerned with how audiences engage with artistic practices beyond the exhibition format. She is currently Curator: Public Programme, at Zabludowicz Collection in London, where she leads on education, events and performance programming. She was previously Curator: Public Programmes at Whitechapel Gallery, London, where she has organised projects with numerous artists and performers including Cally Spooner, Daniel Buren, Oliver Coates, and Heather Phillipson, among many others. Antonia previously worked at the Institute of Contemporary Arts and Serpentine Galleries, both in London, as Associate Curator – Talks and Assistant Curator, Public Programmes respectively. In a freelance capacity, she has organised exhibitions and events at Flat Time House; Gasworks; The Showroom – all in London; and at LOOP, Barcelona. She is on the board of trustees at Lighthouse, Brighton, UK.
Dr Sylwia Serafinowicz is a Curator at a/political, a London-based non-profit organisation supporting politically and socially-engaged artists, and a regular contributor to Artforum magazine. She curated numerous exhibitions, including Shikeith: This Was His Body/ His Body Finally His (2017), Ewa Axelrad: Shtamah (2017), Wild at Heart (2018), Labor Relations (2016), Punxdefektuozoz: Dr Lakra and Laureana Toledo (2015). Prior to a/political, she collaborated with the festival Art Night 2017, The Institute of Contemporary Arts and The Whitechapel Gallery in London, Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris and was a Collections Curator at the Wroclaw Contemporary Museum (2014 – 2017) in Poland.
She received her PhD in History of Art from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London in 2015 and an MA in History of Art from the University of Warsaw in 2009. She is a member of the AICA UK.
Since its beginnings in 2004, Barcelona based artist duo Lolo (Buenos Aires, 1977) and Sosaku (Tokyo, 1976) has focused on an experimental merging of art and sound. The result is a ceaseless investigation of sound carried out through alternative means. Their sound sculptures have gone through an important transition since the application of motors, which allow a constant self-performance of their work. Lolo&Sosaku have exhibited and performed their sound sculptures at international institutions and galleries, such as Museo Reina Sofia, Madrid (2009), Museu da Imagem e do Som, São Paulo (2010), Fundació Gaspar, Barcelona (2016), PSA, Power Station of Art, Shanghai (2016), Boiler Room – Galería Luis Adelantado, Valencia (2018), MACBA, Barcelona (2018) and many more.
Patricia Lara is Curator and Director of The RYDER, a contemporary art gallery on Herald Street, East London. After completing her MA in Contemporary Art Theory at Goldsmiths University, Patricia worked for a number of curators and galleries before opening the gallery. Concealed behind an industrial roller shutter, The RYDER provides a platform to promote emerging and mid-career artists from around the world and represents the work of Andrea Galvani, Rosana Antolí, Jaime Pitarch and William Mackrell. With a strong focus on performance and process-based works, the exhibition program consists of curated dialogues and solo presentations and it is often complemented by public talks and events to encourage dialogue and critical reflection.
Gabriel Virgilio Luciani (Atlanta, USA, 1995) is a curator, editor-in-chief of exibart.es and contemporary art history professor based in Barcelona. Their sphere of research is situated at a liquid intersection between neo-corporealities, poetry, queer theory, magic and objectual affectivity. Over the past eight years, they have curated shows in various galleries, art centres and alternative spaces in the Barcelona area, some within the framework of festivals such as LOOP Barcelona, Art Nou and Barcelona Gallery Weekend. They hold a Masters degree in Digital Arts Curation from the Universitat Ramon Llull – ESDi and a Bachelors degree in Fine Art from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona – Escola Massana.
Laia Estruch (Barcelona, 1981) lives and works in Barcelona. She has a Fine Arts degree from the University of Barcelona and studied in The Cooper Union University during the last year (New York, 2010).
Her practice focuses on the body language in relation to the voice. Using spoken word, songs, objects, and publications, her projects analyse the emotional possibilities of the a capella voice opening a space for reflection around the performative character of the sound recording and the oral archive.
She has presented her projects in MACBA (2012), La Capella BCN Producció (2011, 2013, 2018), Teatre La Villarroel (2013), Fundación Antoni Tàpies (Barcelona, 2014), ADN Platform gallery (Barcelona, 2015), Centro Párraga (Murcia, 2016),
Teatro Pradillo (Madrid, 2016), Fundación Joan Miró (Barcelona, 2016), Antic Teatre (Barcelona, 2016), Chapelle des Beaux-Arts (Paris, 2017), CA2M & La Casa Encendida (Madrid, 2017), Museo Picasso (Barcelona, 2018), Fundación Botí (Córdoba, 2018) and Radio Reina Sofia (2018) among other places.
She carried out workshops in the MACBA educational programme (2016-2018) and participated in the programme En Residència, Creadores in Barcelona high schools(2016-2017).