Colaboratorio Brazil - Exercícios para sair correndo sem ruído e com a bunda de fora ouvindo canções-intestino - 2007
The work is built of 3 solos made independently from each other, based on a common research material, and put together randomly, negotiating or not who does what, when and dealing with our capacities to stand some of the random interferences from one another. The work challenge the norm of what is understood by collaboration as space for consensus, we rather worked in a dis-consensus space, trying to understand and accept each others motives, when can one act freely, what is freedom and how to deal with not accomplished desires? We filtered nothing, we polish nothing, we let things be, mad or not.
How to created a non coherent coherence in the overabundance, in the none selection of the produced materials, of a production that is not yet produced and which has not yet had time to sink in?
How to deal with the conflicts that arise by the difficult acceptance of our co-existence, our different artistic desires, ideas of art production, cultural background and artistic experiences?
Can collaboration be opposite to the norm of what is understood by it, opposite to consensus, sense making, compromising, in favor of one coherent work?
This work proposes collaboration to be understood as the result of disconsensus and the coexistence of dissonant materials.
Filtering nothing, polishing nothing.
Called by an audience, to be a real challenge of what is conceptual dance, an minimalist performance at the time.
The work responded the European producers, calling these processes 'collaboration', where no result is need it to be produced besides an artistic exchanged, though, they planned to select the best works to present in Europe.
CONTEXT:
20 artists from South America and Europe met during 1 initial month (November 2006) to form groups of work, with whom we will develop an artistic process during another 2 month including the 'tour' of what ever is produced in Fortaleza, Bel Horizonte and Rio de Janeiro, in March and April 2007. Our proposal was produced as a response to this settings, holding on to the task of meeting, and exchanging, instead of producing and representing strategies for cultural colonization and appropriation clearly set by the European and brazilian presenters.
REFLECTIONS:
In the studio with Margo and Estella:
The first 3 weeks' artistic process, generated a very genuine structure of work for a new form of collaboration to help us learn from one another, instead of stressing about being as good as the other. We listed subjects of interest related to the Brazilian living conditions, as topics to focus on. These became our daily score. We would select one as the basis for our daily performative translation.
The daily scores were translated performatively (as solo works), accumulated by each artist during 3 weeks. Few group translations were created as well. Each artist composed their own materials, stretching, shortening or transforming them to adapt to the juxtaposition of the materials of others.
The pressure imposed by the final presentation in the 5th week, shadowed the first 3 weeks of a rich process. It resulted in a group conflict, between the one who wished to generate one cohesive material and the two who preferred the risk of this a new form of production and collaboration. The new format of work continued, until we found a way to juxtapose the work where some compromises were done.
The performance was divided in sections by the group-scores, symbolizing the collaborative process, for example the 3 persons trying to walk together on 1 giant long flip-flop sandal (see above image). A common agreement was made: to keep some of the beautiful performative tableaux-images without juxtaposition, such as Estela's singing, and Margo's stepping on candles while reciting a poem of why she hates onion and garlic...)
Support: Danish Art Council (Scenekunstudvalg) & Panorama Festival.