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Organiser’s blog LDN ‘10 – Day 3

Day 3

Improvisation is the name of the game, not just for the artists who start from improvised ideas and develop them into a full show in the space of a few days but also for us at the level of organisation.

Even the best laid plans require a degree of flexibility and this time round even more so than the first event last year. From transport to catering, technical supplies to venue logistics the plans have changed daily and sometimes even hourly. Flexibility is not always easy though but as long as you are able to keep a cool head it’s never that much of a problem. A cool head isn’t always a given though, and I’m the first to sometimes be a little too emotional. Still you live and learn and I have definitely learnt a lot in the last 4 days especially with regards to being flexible and rebounding fast and quickly rather than getting caught up in the fact of things not going according to plan.

I spent most of the day with the visual artists as the musicians had to take a day off due to work duties, and that’s been rather insightful. Last year I never saw inside their world, never stepped foot into their workshops and to be able to do it this time has only given me more respect and appreciation for their art but also for who they are as people. I feel privileged to be privy to what they do but also to have become friends with them over the last year. Coming from the world of music, the visual side of our project has been a constant learning curve for me and one I’ve greatly enjoyed.

The way we are managing to combine two art strands and sets of artists never ceases to amaze me and further proves the power of creativity in uniting people and bringing them together outside of their comfort zones.

I’ll leave you with a video feature The Freak Show shot for the opening of our exhibition a few weeks ago. Come down tomorrow night to see the closing party which will feature some small scale live painting from our guys alongside the usual free drinks and merryment. And then be sure to come down on Friday for the final show. Without hinting at what will be there too much I can definitely say it will blow a few minds I think. We’ve stuck to our words – what people will get is something they’ve never seen.

Original Cultures Art Show from The_Freak_Show on Vimeo.


Editors’ blog LDN ‘10 – Visual arts workshops

Will and Hiraki

By Cristina Balma Tivola

I met Alessandro (one of the Original Cultures organisers) at Dalston Kingsland train station at noon on the second day of the London event. Laurent, the organiser with whom I have until now maintained contact via email regarding Original Cultures, will arrive later. My interest in the project comes from an error of interpretation about its intentions. But, as often happens in these cases, that error has led to a pleasant surprise, and I begin wondering with Laurent – on the basis of what I saw and read online about the first event in Bologna last year – how I could participate. He offers me to follow the production process of the visual artists and to write about it. Documenting the ‘behind the scenes’ of an artistic production: what could be more fascinating to an anthropologist? One who loves to know people, the reasons behind their choices and inspirations, the relationships between artists and the aims of their work, not to mention my own curiosity about the growth of the project until it is shared with the public. For all these reasons I happily accept their offer.

Alessandro leads me through Ridley Road market to Hiraki Sawa’s study, who contributes to the project by providing both the creative space and his own skills as a visual artist to complement the work of DEM Ericailcane and Will Barras. It’s a beautiful sunny day in East London and the street is bustling with people of all backgrounds running between stalls where products from around the world are on display (and particularly from African and Caribbean countries, in this borough). We make our way between Nigerian fabrics and colourful North African women with small children in strollers, fireworks, street vendors and stalls selling bananas, okra, sugarcane and strange potatoes with different shapes. A building at the side of the market hosts some studios, among them Hiraki’s, temporary headquarters for the visual arts side of Original Cultures LDN ‘10.

We walk through corridors which function as storage rooms and finally to the space in which the artists work: a large room, extremely bright, a few useful materials for the work (stocks of A4 sheets, tripod and camera, pens, pencils) and a coffee table on the right with anything you need to prepare cups of coffee and tea – in the best tradition of hospitality which I have been repeatedly exposed to in London, often superficially dismissed as the ‘capital of solitude’. Feeling home at work.

“This is something important” – Alessandro says while explaining me the project – “that they [the artists] feel safe, can work effectively (within the little time available) without stress, are able to concentrate and most of all enjoy it”. All this must run smoothly, both in terms of production and in terms of relations and this is the first impression I take – as an outsider coming from usually different experiences.

The visual artists are working primarily on creating shapes and designs which are then edited for stop-motion animation. All of this will then be projected live along the music which is being written by the 3 musicians in another workshop, located in North London. A challenge, given the short time available. Yet the day moves along without apparent stress. “How many characters will you develop?” – I ask. “All the ones we can do” – DEM answers.

The delicacy of this balanced and continuous production process is such that I refrain from asking questions not to break the spell of a situation that works – although I have my list of questions ready should the situation arise and I can satisfy my curiosity.

Laurent arrives with large quantities of food, including pies, crisps and Italian-style pasta with tomato and olives. He tells the news about the place where the showcase will be given, holds the ranks of the agreements as they are developing, and coordinates the contacts among the various interlocutors.

Even later in the afternoon, unexpected difficulties will arise, and artists and organisers will work together to find a solution. But everything will apparently be solved in the most extreme quietness, not because of superficiality, but more likely because of their habit of working with short deadlines and unexpected obstacles.

The craftsman in our imagination is the artist who creates with few resources and, as a result of learning (if not earning) by practice, produces works that attract visitors from simple premises that become jewels in his hands. As in a dance, the four artists design, colour, paint, carve, and then – in pairs – shoot photos, animating them and commenting on the success of the first few sequences. Like a dance, where words are few – because harmony is already an acquired prerequisite.

“I would like him to work on it the way he wants, that is, I’m curious to see what he does from the very simple things that I do. Today he made an animation, from what I gave him, which I liked a lot”- says DEM to Ericailcane and Alessandro about Hiraki’s work. At dinner all the artists, musicians and visual, organisers and some of their friends – usually separated by borders and distances – eat, talk and share jokes.

Then, DEM timidly and warmly invites Hiraki to work on what he can give him. Mutual respect is deep, as is the curiosity to see how the work of another person can transform and reinvent your own.

The final words of the evening are Om Unit’s (one of the musicians): “We didn’t think about something that we (the musicians) want to tell the public on Friday, we just decided to produce music you can dance to, even if we all produce music in different ways and styles… We know vaguely what they will do for the visual part, but we are not influencing each other. If image and sound match, fine; if they are totally at odds, fine as well. We will discover how it will be on Friday when we set it all up and see it together for the first time.” The work of a tight-knit team of craftsmen eager to make way for the showcase itself and enchant themselves by the potential outcome of this syncretism.

DEM takes another piece of A4 paper, and begins to draw eyes and bubbles.


Organiser’s blog LDN ‘10 – Day 1

Dinner day 1

And so it starts again. The second original cultures event. We’ve swapped the heat of summer and the historic streets and old buildings of Bologna for the less scenic streets, though still inspiring in their own ways, of a rainy London in early spring. That’s the beauty of this project, being able to transport the idea around different cities and see just how it changes and takes on a different form based on the location.

Our six artists have returned alongside a seventh, the Japanese visual artist Hiraki Sawa. The guys all met together for the first time since last June last night and already the creative juices are flowing. This morning they are setting up in their workshops in East and North london. They’ll come out in four days with a one hour show. What shape it takes is still anyone’s guess at this point. Edit: by the time I’m posting this we already have an idea of the shape, but I won’t give it up just yet. Stick around for the week via the various social sites (and here) and you can get an idea for yourself – see below for links of where to see things as they happen (more or less). And if you can be sure to come see the final result Friday evening in Brick Lane.

With the Italian contigent playing the guests this time I’m already seeing the same cultural exchange and learning that made our first event so special. From the weather to the food, transport and people they are learning just how different a city and place London can be. And seeing just how this impacts them and what they do is definitely one of the best things to come out of this project.

For me personally it’s a much bigger challenge this time round as I’m having to look after and organise movements and the such for 10-15 people for a week. Anyone who lives in London knows just how difficult that can be. Thankfully bologna 09 served as a good preparation and once more we’re seeing the same supportive spirit where everyone is helping out and people are giving us their time and help to ensure the event runs as smoothly and professionally as possible. Shouts to Mauritz and Erwan for the rehearsal space and help, proving this point once more.

I was speaking to Word to Mother last night, a visual artist and friend of our visual artists and our host Stolen Space. It was interesting and rewarding to hear him relate to the idea behind Original Cultures and the need for a structure behind artists so that they do retain a degree of control but can also focus on what they do best.

All in all it’s been a good day and it’s all just started. More caffeine and more coffee and then some sleep. Oh yeah and big up to the waiters at Somine’s for being good hosts even though they wouldn’t go lower on the discount. Anyone looking for a good, honest Turkish meal in Dalston needs to check them.

Follow us around for the week (and after) as we go along at the following spots:
Facebook page
Tumblr blog
Twitter


Original Cultures Bologna ‘09 – The Documentary

Finally it’s here: the Original Cultures Bologna ‘09 documentary. 20 minutes giving an insight into what happened during one sunny week in early June ‘09 at the first ever Original Cultures event.

For one week we brought together six artists from the UK, Italy and Japan and the fields of visual arts and music. Om Unit, Tatsuki, Tayone, Ericailcane, Will Barras and DEM spent 3 days creating new works exclusively for a final showcase on day 4, at the same time taking part in workshops and seminars around the city allowing the public an insight into their creative process as well as the cultural exchange fostered by the event.

This documentary, filmed and edited by The Slow Breakfast, aims to give those who couldn’t be there an idea of what happened (and those who were there a nice little trip down memory lane) with edits of the 3 days of workshops, the final showcase and the live painting session which took place on the 5th (unofficial) day. All of this is soundtracked by music from the showcase and also includes some interviews with the musicians about their experience of the week in Bologna.

You can stream the documentary above or download it below both in HD quality. Be aware the file weights 750mb so make sure you got a fast connection.

Massive thanks to all the artists, staff and crew who made this event possible. Also big thanks to our official partners, media sponsors and supporters.

You can check more audio, video, photos and blogs from the event in our archives.

And don’t forget to check the events list for details of our Original Cultures London 2010 event which is taking place Feb 27 to March 5, 2010 at venues in the Old Truman Brewery, Brick Lane.


‘Original Cultures – The Showcase’ at Corbet Place, March 5 2010

London showcase flyer

Original Cultures London 2010 will close with ‘The Showcase’. As with our first show in Bologna last year, this will feature an exclusive one-hour performance from our seven artists: the musicians Om Unit (UK), Tatsuki (JP), and Tayone (IT) alongside visual artists Ericailcane (IT), DEM (IT), Will Barras (UK) and Hiraki Sawa (JP).

The performance will feature brand new music and visual works created by the artists in the 3 days prior to the showcase. This will be a totally unique performance, not to be missed. This last sentence may sound like a boast but we mean it – just check the footage from our Bologna show if you don’t believe us (vids on the right hand side). Expect an audio and visual experience like never before!

‘Original Cultures – The Showcase’ will be held at Corbet Place, part of the Old Truman Brewery in Brick Lane, E1. There’s lots of comfy seats, a nice garden for the smokers and a lovely drinks selection at the bar. Doors open at 6pm. Timetable and links below.

Don’t forget that the day before, on March 4th, we will be in the square where both Corbet Place and the Stolen Space gallery are located (at the back of the Truman Brewery) for the closing party of our exhibition featuring all our artists, live painting, music and more. So if you can’t make the Friday than make time for the Thursday, and if you can make both even better!

Venue: Corbet Place
Entry: FREE
Timetable: 6-8pm – Warm up with Original Cultures DJs / 8-9pm – The Showcase / 9-11pm – afterparty with Tayone, Om Unit and Original Cultures DJs

Links:
Corbet Place
Truman Brewery

Original Cultures London 2010 is a week long event taking place in venues around the Old Truman Brewery, London. Full schedule of activities is as follows (full details on our events page):
• ‘Original Cultures – The Show’ an exhibition of brand new works from Ericailcane, DEM and Will Barras, Feb 11 to March 7 @ Stolen Space gallery, with private viewing Feb 11, 6-9pm, free
• Music production workshop for young people, feat. Om Unit and Tatsuki, Feb 27 @ Stolen Space gallery in conjunction with Hackney Council and the DYH 2010 festival
• Closing party for ‘Original Cultures – The Show’ exhibition, March 4 @ Stolen Space gallery featuring all artists, live painting, exclusive art for sale and more, 6-9pm, free
• ‘Original Cultures – The Showcase’ featuring all 7 artists collaborating for a unique audio/
visual show created in the days prior, March 5 @ Corbet Place, 6-11pm, free


‘Original Cultures – The Show’ online preview

Ericailcane, DEM, Will Barras print

In the run up to the opening of our exhibition, ‘Original Cultures – The Show’, at the Stolen Space gallery on February 11, 2010 we are giving everyone the chance to preview some of the art created exclusively for the exhibition and which will be available on sale. The exhibition forms part of Original Cultures London 2010, our second event.

This preview is just a small insight into what the artists have created for the occasion and features new works from Ericailcane, DEM and Will Barras as well as audio from Om Unit, Tatsuki and Tayone.

Read on for the previews and be sure to come and see them for yourselves if you are in London between February 11 and March 7, 2010. Please check our events section for full details of all Original Cultures London 2010 activities, opening times and locations.

NOTE: This is only a small fraction of what is on display at the exhibition!

‘Original Cultures – The Show’ gallery
In the slideshow below you can preview some of the art available exclusively at the exhibition, including the pieces used for the limited edition picture discs and the two collaborative prints created especially for the show by the 3 artists. In addition there are also previous pieces by DEM, some of which are available at the exhibition. You can view full details of each image on the Flickr photo set.

Original Cultures picture discs
Original Cultures has produced 6 limited edition picture discs for sale at the exhibition. These are unique audio and visual packages comprising 6×10″ picture discs and accompanying 7″s. Each package includes the following: one 10″ picture disc framed featuring work from Ericailcane, DEM or Will Barras and audio from Om Unit, Tatsuki or Tayone, one separate 7″ featuring two exclusive tracks from Om Unit, Tatsuki and Tayone which can be listened to (this one isn’t framed!).

Below you can preview the picture discs artwork as well as the audio.

Om Unit, Tatsuki and Tayone – Picture Discs audio preview

Ericailcane Picture Disc artwork
These 2 designs will be sold alongside music by Tayone. Each package will feature a 10″ picture, framed and mounted, and a separate 7″ with the two tracks for personal enjoyment.
Ericailcane artwork
Ericailcane artwork

DEM Picture Disc artwork
These 2 designs will be sold alongside music by Tatsuki. Each package will feature a 10″ picture, framed and mounted, and a separate 7″ with the two tracks for personal enjoyment.
DEM artwork
DEM artwork

Will Barras Picture Disc artwork
These 2 designs will be sold alongside music by Om Unit. Each package will feature a 10″ picture, framed and mounted, and a separate 7″ with the two tracks for personal enjoyment.
Will Barras artwork
Will Barras artwork


‘Original Cultures – The Show’ at Stolen Space gallery, Feb-March 2010

Original Cultures - The Show web flyer

Original Cultures 2010 kicks off with ‘Original Cultures – The Show’ an exhibition of brand new works from Ericailcane, DEM and Will Barras at the Stolen Space Gallery, London. The exhibition will run concurrent to the main event which will take place in the first week of March. Full schedule details are below.

From February 11 to March 7, 2010, Original Cultures is exhibiting new works from 3 of its visual artists, commissioned exclusively for the occasion. As visiting guests, Ericailcane and DEM will take the lead bringing to Stolen Space a collection of brand new paintings and other works. Will Barras meanwhile will be exhibiting a new animation and associated designs he is producing exclusively for the show. Together these three artists have received worldwide acclaim in recent years, exhibiting from Los Angeles to Sweden via Hong Kong and Eastern Europe. This will be DEM’s first London exhibition, and Ericailcane’s second.

The show will be completed by an exclusive collaborative print produced by the three artists and screenprinted by Stolen Space, as well as a series of six picture discs produced by Original Cultures and featuring art from Will Barras, Ericailcane and DEM and music from Om Unit (UK), Tatsuki (JP) and Tayone (IT), the three musicians involved in the Original Cultures project. These picture discs, six 10”s, will be framed and sold with a separate 7” featuring two exclusive tracks from each musician. These discs, combining visual arts and music in a rather unique package, are exclusive to the exhibition.

An opening party will be held on February 11th with Will Barras and the musicians in attendance. Ericailcane, DEM and Will Barras will be present at the gallery on March 4th for a closing party which will feature live painting from the trio in and around the gallery alongside additional exclusive art works for sale.

Stolen Space gallery is located in the Old Truman Brewery, Brick Lane, E1. Visit www.stolenspace.com for directions. The gallery is open Tuesday to Sunday, from 11am to 7pm.

Original Cultures London 2010 is a week long event taking place in venues around the Old Truman Brewery, London. Full schedule of activities is as follows:
• ‘Original Cultures – The Show’ an exhibition of brand new works from Ericailcane, DEM and Will Barras, Feb 11 to March 7 @ Stolen Space gallery, with private viewing Feb 11, 6-9pm, free
• Music production workshop for young people, feat. Om Unit and Tatsuki, Feb 27 @ Stolen Space gallery in conjunction with Hackney Council and the DYH 2010 festival
• Closing party for ‘Original Cultures – The Show’ exhibition, March 4 @ Stolen Space gallery featuring all artists, live painting, exclusive art for sale and more, 6-9pm, free
• ‘Original Cultures – The Showcase’ featuring all 7 artists collaborating for a unique audio/visual show created in the days prior, March 5 @ Corbet Place, 6-11pm, free

We hope to see you there!


Ericailcane x DEM x Will Barras – Bartleby video

3790625530_518dc60149

In the run-up to our Original Cultures London 2010 event we’re releasing a brand new video of our visual artists painting a building in Bologna together on the last day of our 2009 event. Footage from this session, which was organised at the last minute, has so far never been released. The only record of it were a few images on our Flickr page. For the first time you can see what these guys did in an afternoon and in an improvised setting.

The soundtrack for this video is taken from the live show that was held the previous night, and features our three musicians alongside Bruno Briscik on cello bass. Check out full audio from the show on our Soundcloud page.

The video also forms part of the video documentary of our Bologna 09 event, which if you’ve been paying attention you’ll know has been considerably delayed from our original announced release date of October 09. We’re sorry for the delay but we’re doing our best to release the Bologna video doc this month, as a way to promote the London show. We hope to have everything online in two weeks time.

You can stream or download the video below. iTunes and RSS feed subscribers should already have it. Remember the easiest way to keep up with all our video and audio is to subscribe to either RSS or iTunes and then just let them do their magic.

Stay tuned for details of Original Cultures London 2010 and in the meantime enjoy!

Filmed, edited and produced by The Slow Breakfast – http://www.theslowbreakfast.com


Ericailcane, DEM, Will Barras – Stay Away From Light (edit 2)

Animation work

Here is the second short edit of the exclusive animation created by the trio of visual artists we invited to Bologna in June this year.

As we explained with the first video this animation was created by Ericailcane and DEM from Italy and Will Barras from the UK. The music was written by Om Unit (UK), Tatsuki (JP) and Tayone (IT). Together these six artists worked as part of the first Original Cultures event in Bologna, Italy in June 2009. The audio and animation were created separately, without the artists knowing what the others were doing, before being brought together for a live showcase.

This edit gives everyone who couldn’t make the show, as well as those who did, a chance to see part of what happened on the night – a truly unique coming together of artists and cultures.

Originally silent, these short edits of the animation have been synced with music from the live show. You can also view this Flickr album for more behind the scenes look at how the guys created the animation and the rest of the visual show they put together.

You can view the first edit here. Stream and download the second edit below.

In 2010 we’ll be unveiling three remixes/soundtracking of the animation by new artists from the UK, Italy and Japan. Till then enjoy!


Ericailcane, DEM, Will Barras – Stay Away From Light (edit 1)

Visual workshop

Finally we’re very proud to bring you the first (of two) short edit of the exclusive animation created by the trio of visual artists we invited to Bologna in June this year.

Together these three artists, namely Ericailcane and DEM from Italy and Will Barras from the UK, created an animation to accompany the music that was being written at the same time by the three musicians we’d also invited – Om Unit (UK), Tatsuki (JP) and Tayone (IT). Bear in mind that while these six artists worked in the same period of time (4 consecutive days) and in the same city, they didn’t work together as such and never saw the final result of each other’s work until the last day when everything was brought together for the final showcase. No one knew what it would look and sound like together until the show started.

Originally silent, we’ve made short edits of the animation synced with music from the live show to give everyone a chance to see some of the incredible stuff the guys came up with. You can also view this Flickr album for more behind the scenes look at how the guys created the animation and the rest of the visual show they put together.

You can stream and download it below.

This is the first of two edits, the next one will go online shortly. And in 2010 we’ll be unveiling three remixes/soundtracking of the animation by new artists from the UK, Italy and Japan. Till then enjoy!


Original Cultures showcase @ Vibe Live, London

SAUCY_BACK_HI

We return for another London showcase ahead of the Original Cultures London 2010 event. This time we take over the Vibe Live venue on Brick Lane with the help of our friends from Open Sauce.

On Sunday 29 November 2009, we’ll be showcasing live music and art (painting and more) from our artists and friends as well as showing movies, docus and live footage from previous events and more.

Artists will include 2tall/Om Unit (UK), Mistah Klevvah (UK), Mr Beatnick (UK), RUN (IT) and Will Barras (UK) alongside the Open Sauce DJs and The Reptiles, who will be doing a live show.

The event runs all day from 3pm until 11.30pm with food, comfy sofas and things to do, see and read. And best of all it’s FREE all day. So no excuses not to come and enjoy free art on a sunday, in one of the best parts of town – the Brick Lane market with its many food stalls and bargains is outside the door of the venue.

Full details below, flyer above and you can RSVP via our Facebook event page here.

Saucy Sundays – Open Sauce vs Original Cultures

Two collectives go head to head over the course of one afternoon with a selection of movies, docus, live footage, live art, DJs and live music. ALL FOR FREE!

Open Sauce presents…
The Reptiles – LIVE (Liquid Playthings)
DJs Man One and Don Grizzly
And a selection of footag…e ’sauced’ from previous events

Original Cultures presents…
Om Unit – LIVE (All City/Terrorhythm)
Mistah Klevvah – LIVE (ex-Various Prod.)
DJs Kper (Original Cultures/Rhythm Inc) and Mr Beatnick (Shhhh)
Live painting, drawing and other visual fun from Will Barras (UK) and RUN (IT)
And a selection of live footage and visual art from previous events

FREE ENTRY ALL DAY AND NIGHT w/ free popcorn, comfy sofas, things to read, see and do
Sunday 29th November at Vibe Live (above Vibe Bar), Brick Lane, London.


Original Cultures x Museo della Musica

oc_banner_exhibition

From July 4th to 31st, Original Cultures will be holding an exhibition at the Museo Internazionale e Biblioteca della Musica di Bologna showcasing all the art created during the Original Cultures pilot, which was held from June 4 to 6, 2009.

For full details check our detailed event post.

Where: Museo Internazionale e Biblioteca della Musica di Bologna
When: July 4-31 (all day)
Contact details for museum: Tel. 051 2757711 • museomusica@comune.bologna.it
Launch: Saturday 4 July at 12,00
Opening hours: Tuesday to Friday 9.30 to 16.00 • Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays: 10.00 to 18.30 • closed Mondays

OC Exhibition flyer


Original Cultures Bologna 09 – Day 4 video

Original Cultures trailer

And here we are, a video edit of Day 4 the last day of the Original Cultures pilot. Featuring work from all the artists during our live showcase which took place on the evening of Saturday June 6 at Si, in Bologna.

Edited by The Slow Breakfast. Available as a direct download in HD quality (quicktime format) optimised for iTunes and iPod viewing. Direct download link beneath the preview.

Look out for one more video edit of the Original Cultures pilot and then we will be working on a short documentary of the entire week which will be made available during the summer. For now though enjoy!


Original Cultures – The Exhibition

museo09

From July 4th to 31st, Original Cultures will be holding an exhibition at the Museo Internazionale e Biblioteca della Musica di Bologna showcasing all the art created during the Original Cultures pilot, which was held from June 4 to 6, 2009.

The exhibition will be spread over two spaces inside the museum. In one space an installation will feature music and visual works created by the pilot’s six artists: visual artists Ericailcane (IT), DEM (IT) and Will Barras (UK), and musicians Tayone (IT), 2tall/Om Unit (UK), and Tatsuki (JP). More specifically the installation will recreate all the visual and musical elements of the pilot’s showcase, including the ingenious Chinese shadows based visuals, adapted for a smaller space.

In the second room the exhibition will showcase the video and photo documentation by The Slow Breakfast and Anna Marocco respectively.

Where: Museo Internazionale e Biblioteca della Musica di Bologna
When: July 4-31 (all day)
Contact details for museum: Tel. 051 2757711 • museomusica@comune.bologna.it
Launch: Saturday 4 July at 12,00
Opening hours: Tuesday to Friday 9.30 >16.00 • Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays: 10.00 >18.30 • closed Mondays

OC Exhibition flyer


Editors’ blog – Day 4

live painting

We are sorry but this post isn’t available yet in English.

Da Giorgia Soncin.

“Mono no aware (物の哀れ) è un termine giapponese usato per descrivere la consapevolezza della precarietà delle cose ed il lieve senso di rammarico che comporta il loro trascorrere.”

E’ cosi che ci si sente una volta accese le luci nel momento il cui Laurent chiede gentilmente al pubblico di lasciare il teatro perché è ora di chiudere…

Il termine giapponese è un po’ forte forse, ma rende bene l’idea se lo si associa ad un senso globale di soddisfazione e pace dei sensi tipico di quando si è esattamente dove si vorrebbe essere e nel momento più opportuno.

In poche parole: it’s the place to be.

Con oggi si chiude il cerchio, nei giorni passati gi artisti hanno creato, interagito e condiviso. Quello che gli spettatori hanno potuto vedere (che comunque non è poco) è solo una parte del lavoro; dietro a cui c’è un processo di creazione lontano dalle logiche di mercato e guidato dalla volontà e dal piacere di vivere l’arte con passione senza la ricerca forzata di risultati effimeri.

In questa giornata conclusiva gli artisti sono andati avanti con i lavoro in loco.

Per chi non c’era, quella che è stata realizzata è una scenografia all’interno e all’esterno dello spazio teatrale, nel cortiletto adiacente al Sì.

All’interno gli artisti hanno ricreato uno spettacolo di ombre cinesi in movimento, utilizzando come supporto, quattro giradischi settati su diverse velocità.

Sagome tagliate interamente a mano rese ancora più suggestive dall’uso del colore, proiettate sui muri, circondavano gli spettatori trasportati in un mondo magicamente ovattato.

Sul muro frontale, contemporaneamente, veniva proiettato un video, a cui gli artisti avevano precedentemente lavorato, in cui tutti i personaggi- ombra danzavano e si muovevano interagendo con il suono in un balletto meccanico che non poteva non coinvolgere chi partecipava alla performance.

A poche ora dalla conclusione posso dire che più che un semplice spettacolo, questo può essere definito come un esperimento di gesamtkunstwerk, un ritorno alla ricerca della totalità delle arti attraverso la loro fusione.

Artisti che si impossessano e danno forma agli spazi sia interni che esterni poiché, nonostante la stanchezza e il lavoro di montaggio, cutting e installazione di video e ombre, i cortile non è stato lasciato anonimo.

ERICAILCANE, DEM e WILL BARRAS hanno infatti intagliato tre sagome e riprendendo il tema delle ombre utilizzato per la scenografia interna, e hanno pensato di proiettarle su un grande muro creando qualcosa di veramente spettacolare e inatteso

Come se non bastasse, perché l’arte è evidentemente una forma di addiction, i tre artisti si sono concessi una parentesi pittorica di live painting in orario aperitivo, in cui si sono cimentati in un trittico incrociato con scambi di posizione e interventi sovrapposti utilizzando peraltro soltanto tre colori, nella totale semplicità ma regalando allo spazio un’opera d’arte veramente originale e significativa.

Questo intervento, nello specifico, ha attratto molti spettatori, e posso dire di esserne fiera per due motivi sostanziali: uno è legato al concetto di trasparenza che Original Cultures si è riproposto fin dal primo giorno, quello cioè di documentare e rendere totalmente visibili, dall’esterno, i processi creativi e le dinamiche organizzative del progetto; sia per coinvolgere il pubblico, sia per avere un valore aggiunto rispetto agli eventi pacchetto a cui ci hanno abituati, format standardizzati in cui gli artisti spesso suonano solo perché pagati e si propongono con un approccio sterile e privo di calore in un ritorno alle dinamiche di commissione che dovrebbero essere ormai superate da tempo.

L’altro motivo è legato all’approccio che Original Cultures ha volutamente cercato di instaurare con gli artisti coinvolti e con l’intero staff.

Fin dal giorno 1 si è creata tra tutti, artisti e non, una grande complicità, una sinergia che ha reso possibile a ciascuno di compiere il proprio lavoro nel migliore dei modi, senza la pesantezza data da un senso del dovere imposto dall’alto.

E il risultato mi pare quanto mai eloquente.

In questi giorni abbiamo pensato insieme, riflettuto, riso, mangiato gelati, cercato soluzioni ottimali a problemi inaspettati e non preventivati.

Nessuno di noi sapeva quale sarebbe stato il feedback del pubblico perché nessuno realmente sapeva in cosa sarebbe sfociato questo esperimento in diretta, questo tentativo di creare qualcosa dal basso, qualcosa che mettesse in relazione artisti tanto diversi e discipline tanto diverse.

Parlando con i visual artists è venuto fuori anche da parte loro lo stupore nel vedere come musica e installazioni fossero inconsapevolmente complementari andando ben oltre le aspettative.

Credo che situazioni del genere debbano andare ripetute, soprattutto in un paese come l’Italia, in cui la cultura e la sperimentazione artistica sono continuamente vittime dell’ingerenza da parte di finalità definite erroneamente “valori”; in cui l’arte, in tutte le sue modalità espressive si trova ad essere spesso soffocata dalla ricerca compulsiva del prodotto a scapito di quelli che sono i reali processi creativi che fanno l’opera finale.

Indirettamente, il nostro è stato un tentativo di recupero, Original Culture, come ricerca di recuperare i valori originali delle arti, quali la condivisione e la creatività non saturata dal mercato e dal business.

Se è vero che ogni stop è solo un altro start ci auguriamo tutti che questo sia solo l’inizio…attendiamo con ansia luglio…

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I visual artists sono al lavoro già da un paio d’ore all’esterno, intenti a dipingere sui muri del cortile e a tramutarne l’atmosfera con magiche ombre cinesi, quando Tatsuki da il via allo show musicale all’interno del Sì. E’ un piacere constatare che l’afflusso è già notevole. In breve tempo i convenuti si assiepano intorno al palco, strategicamente allestito in mezzo al salone, circondandolo. In alto, ad ogni angolo sono sistemati profili di figurine rotanti realizzati ad hoc e le cui ombre, proiettate, danzano sui muri in un folle girotondo.

Il giapponese realizza un set solista incentrato su ritmiche assolutamente minimali, in cui ha messo in luce tutta la sua perizia nell’uso della strumentazione Korg, dal mixer Zero4 al Kaoss Pad. Una prova particolare la sua, che ha lasciato perplessi non pochi in sala ma che ha rivelato un’anima, un background ed un approccio culturale desueti, non soltanto tecnicismi.

Il testimone passa dunque a Jim 2Tall/Om Unit: i ritmi si alzano, le teste cominciano a muoversi, i beat iniziano a farsi più pesanti ed in questa ricerca tra nuova elettronica ed abstract hip hop si erge il remix di Digidesign di Joker, sicuramente uno dei pezzi del momento… comincio ad annuire, buon segno…

Il pubblico è ormai caldo quando arriva la portata principale: sul palco salgono tutti i musicisti coinvolti nel progetto. Tatsuki riprende la sua postazione, 2Tall resta al suo posto, salgono in pedana Tayone e Bruno Briscik, a tutti gli effetti il quarto membro di questa neonata formazione. Come ho già ricordato nelle precedenti cronache, il set che è stato preparato ex novo nel corso di questi giorni è assolutamente poliedrico e travalica il semplice turntablism. Ne avevo soppesato la capacità di intrattenimento e non avevo dubbi a riguardo: chi sarebbe stato presente si sarebbe divertito, se la sarebbe spassata. Così è stato, complice l’abbraccio della folla. Si passa così, come in una sorta di caleidoscopio stilistico di cui è impossibile descrivere ogni passaggio, da episodi più “dance” ai suoni più secchi e taglienti dell’electro-hop (con Jim alle keyboards a farla da padrone), da parentesi jazzy che esaltano il ruolo di Briscik sulle corde del suo violoncello elettrico e lo scratch morbido ed espressivo di Tayone (si ricompongono i Rajasful in altro contesto) sino a momenti di climax in cui i beat ed il boom bap si fanno davvero possenti e le sonorità addirittura abrasive e mi esce un “wow!” e attorno a me ragazze che approvano e fischiano come camionisti e la folla ondeggia e sembra di stare ad una festa di quartiere più che ad un classico concerto… l’empatia è reale, palpabile… Al termine è un’ovazione a sottolineare la bontà dell’operato.

La domanda che sorge spontanea è: verrà dato seguito a questa collaborazione? Lo spirito sperimentale dell’intera operazione Original Cultures non poteva lasciarmi con un punto interrogativo migliore di questo. Alla prossima.


Organisers’ blog – Day 4

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Whoa. That is the most direct and natural reaction to what happened last night, on the evening on day 4 at the closing of the Original Cultures pilot. Whoa. The live showcase, the crowning of the 4 days of work for the artists and the cherry on top of the pilot if you will, the event where the public gets to see everything that we’ve all worked on for so long, was a success – and as an organiser this isn’t a boast, it really, truly was.

We had a packed house, with over 300 people, we emptied the bar, the artists got a thunderous round of applause and demands for an encore, which they obliged leaving us with people in the venue until 2am, when we’d officially announced it would end at midnight. One of the members of the city’s council, who sits on the cultural board came at midnight, on a saturday, and personally shook the hand of the artists, thanking them for the show. One of the guys who runs the company which handles the space was dancing and smiling all night, telling us at midnight that we could have another 30mins of show if we wanted – so the 4 musicians, Tayone, 2tall, Tatsuki and Bruno Briscik, went back on stage and jammed for 20 mins. By 2am Will Barras, DEM and Ericailcane were still painting – which is all the more hilarious considering what happened earlier in the evening. Let me rewind for a sec…

We got to the venue around lunch – the musicians soundchecked in the PM while the visual artists put the finishing touches to their creations and masterminded how the visuals would play out throughout the night. Things were going well, with the necessary high level of running around involved when you put together an event. And then as we approached opening time, the decision was made to cancel the live painting aperitivo due to technical issues – partly true, but also due to the fact that the visual artists actually stopped working as people entered the venue. Having been at it for 5 days non stop, there was no way we would force anyone to do something just because it was originally written in the programme.

With this in mind we opened and hoped for the best. People came looking for the live painting and decided to maybe come back when they learnt it wasn’t happening. Others came in regardless, curiously looking around the venue, trying to understand what was going to happen 4 hours later. As I stood in the courtyard next to the bar, DJing, I kept thinking to myself that maybe even without the live painting we’d still manage to bring enough people in. You see the thing is, the whole live painting is quite popular here in Bologna, and the visual artists were definitely one of the main attractions of the project for people in the area, mainly because Ericailcane and DEM are local artists who everybody knows. Losing the live painting meant we might well lose a big amount of people. As I tried to not think about it too much, considering that we knew we still had something incredible prepared but that we couldn’t really tell people without giving the game away, I got on with trying to make people drink and enjoy themselves as the evening rolled on. And then I looked up, around 8 or so and Will was walking around with a tub of paint… and that’s when it all started going crazy.

DEM, Ericailcane and Will painted from 8 till 10, as they did people flocked to the venue, by the time I finished the DJ set in the courtyard, the venue was nearly full and I could barely believe it. The show started with the first hour split between Tatsuki and 2tall/Om Unit doing solo shows of about 30mins and the second hour with Tayone, Bruno and the two of them doing the live show they’d spent the last 3 days creating. As I stood there looking at Tatsuki on the stage playing to the audience a piece he’d finished writing 2 hours before it started to hit me just how special this all was.

The stage was set in the center of the room, so that people could stand all around the musicians. On the walls projections made by the visual artists played using Chinese shadow concepts. And on one side a giant screen played elements from an animation that they also created during the week. Tatsuki for his part ditched the entire 30 mins set he’d originally prepared and instead played a beautifully atmospheric 20 or so mins using sounds he’d recorded the day before and inspired by the visuals created by DEM, Will and Ericailcane: us talking, him speaking Italian, the ticks from the clock of one of the guys who runs the venue… it was incredible to hear all these sounds which I knew were ‘ours’ coming together while people stood around trying to understand what was happening. It was the perfect way to start.

2tall/Om Unit came up next, playing 20 or so minutes of new material and bringing the vibe and energy up a level, perfectly as if we’d masterminded the whole thing from start to finish. But we hadn’t, no one had heard the others’ bits, no one apart from the artists knew what would happen…

And then the final hour started and it continued to be incredible – the three of them played as if they’d known each other all their lives. The audience went crazy, the vibe was unbelievable. 10 mins before the end we were turning people away by the tens, and wondering how the hell it had all happened. Everywhere I looked people were smiling, dancing and enjoying themselves. The visual artists were more happy than I’ve seen them all week and so were the musicians.

Fast forward two hours, and we’re all sitting around coming down from the adrenaline rush and thinking back to various elements of the night. Everyone, from the artists to the organisers, the technical crew to the film crew was on a high. And everyone was responsible for the beautiful event that took place last night – everyone worked for nothing more than the want to do this, we came together as a whole in the most organic manner.

And to me, as the person who had this idea, who brought this idea to this town nearly 1 year ago to get some advice, to see the idea turn into reality like this (pretty much one year to the day since I first came up with it) is just simply incredible – tears came to me early on in the night and by the end I was just floating on a cloud, words unable to do justice to the feeling of seeing this idea birthed into reality. To know that every single person involved also felt the same is the best reward ever.

We’ve worked on this for 6 months solid, plus 6 months before of masterminding, and one week of just working non stop – and there has never been a point in all that time where someone argued or something went truly ‘wrong’. And that’s something I can’t even begin to comprehend. It gives me incredible faith that what we are building, is something that will continue to grow organically and that will hopefully be enjoyed by more and more people in the future.

For now, the best brunch in Bologna awaits me. HD video teasers of day 3 and 4 will be online by tomorrow. And full reports from the editors and artists too. And then stay tuned as we start to roll out the documentation of the project starting this month until the end of the summer.

To everyone who came last night, thank you. To everyone who took part in this, bless you.

Laurent

Videos:
Day by day HD teaser vids on Vimeo
Behind the scenes videos on Vimeo

Links:
See behind the scenes on our Tumblr – originalcultures.tumblr.com
Catch the daily blogs on our site – originalcultures.org/blogs
Catch us over at Shook Magazine on the daily too – shook.fm
Hear us tweet as we go – twitter.com/og_cultures
And don’t forget to check/add/friend/fan us on the Flickr, Facebook and Myspace.


Original Cultures Bologna 09 – Day 3 video

Original Cultures trailer

We return for the third time, with a video edit of what happened during day 3 of the Original Cultures pilot featuring footage of the visual arts workshop, soundcheck and the seminar at the Modo Infoshop.

Edited by The Slow Breakfast. Available as a direct download in HD quality (quicktime format) optimised for iTunes and iPod viewing. Direct download link beneath the preview.


Editors’ blog – Workshops day 2

visuals day 2

We are sorry but this post is not yet available in English.

Da Giorgia Soncin.

Da oggi cambio di location, che si sposta dallo studio di Ericailcane agli spazi del Sì in via San Vitale 67 a Bologna, luogo deputato per l’evento conclusivo di sabato sera. E’ da oggi che le idee dei tre artisti prendono forma e interagiscono con lo spazio dandogli nuova vita.

Dopo gli interventi dei tre musicisti, che hanno permesso al pubblico di prendere parte alla gestazione del progetto, anche per quanto riguarda ERICAILCANE, DEM e WILL BARRAS, partono ufficialmente le prove in in loco che anche in questo caso dialogano con l’ambientazione scegliendo i linguaggi figurativi più diversi.

Altri elementi si aggiungono dunque alla composizione finale: L’interazione con lo spazio e la scelta di coniugare forme di espressione artisticha legate alla tradizione, che troppo spesso nell’arte contemporanea viene sottovalutata o messa da parte, con le tecnologie del video e dello screening.

Come giustamente ha detto Tayone, uno dei tre musicisti coinvolti nel progetto: “Non aspettatevi uno show come gli altri”. Né dal punto di vista musicale, né tantomeno da quello scenografico in cui gli artisti si riapproprieranno dell’ambiente rivoluzionando con esso l’intero spazio percettivo degli spettatori.

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Da Alarico Mantovani.

Sono arrivati i sub! E si sente…! Il Teatro San Leonardo rimbomba di bassi belli pieni e potenti mentre i Nostri sono all’opera sul materiale di ieri, per raffinarlo, ampliarlo e rielaborarlo al meglio. E’ già pronto un set di almeno una dozzina di pezzi, tutti preparati con impressionante rapidità, nell’arco di appena due giorni. Oggi pomeriggio, entrando in sala, pare evidente che il dialogo artistico stia decollando. La musica del trio assume un livello di fluidità palpabile, è rotonda e scorrevole ma incalzante… a tratti rivela qualche parentela con quei Glitch Mob su cui cadrà il discorso qualche ora più tardi…

Alle 18, come previsto, inizia il workshop dedicato alla sezione musicale di Original Cultures. Il pubblico si dispone nell’adiacente sala dello spazio Sì, dove si svolgerà lo show di sabato, ed assiste ad una dimostrazione in diretta video di Tay, 2Tall e Tatsuki, un assaggio del lavoro che stanno allestendo. Il live demo viene ripreso tramite una telecamera e proiettato su un grande schermo. Al termine del set gli artisti raggiungono i convenuti ed inizia una conversazione/interazione/intervista, gestita e moderata dal sottoscritto e da Laurent Fintoni. La discussione tocca diversi argomenti: in primo luogo la differenza tra l’attività musicale che comunemente svolge un producer e la peculiarità offerta invece da Original Cultures, quella di poter interagire giorno dopo giorno, gomito a gomito, in un’atmosfera di cameratismo creativo e spirito di condivisione di un’esperienza inusuale.

Il focus si sposta poi sulle modalità operative che si sono stabilite tra gli artisti: ne emerge in sostanza una sorta di intercambiabilità, casualità ed eterogeneità dei ruoli in fase di composizione. La chiacchierata scivola quindi sul ruolo del produttore e su quelle che sono le difficoltà di mettere in scena un live davvero efficace ed esauriente al giorno d’oggi. Non potevo non chiedere infine quali sono i loro preferiti al momento e tra i nomi escono Flying Lotus, Mark Pritchard e diversi esponenti della scena dubstep. Ottime scelte direi… Le chiacchiere e gli scambi di pareri proseguono in cortile. Fine della seconda giornata.


Organisers’ blog – Day 1

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Whoa. I barely know where to start. Fourteen hours days combined with an unhealthy amount of coffee, cigarettes and sugar have left me a bit of a shivering wreck, and it’s only the beginning of the second (official) day. I’ve been for 3 days already, preparing everything and to be honest while I am a bit of a shivering wreck, I’m also incredibly hyper and I feel truly blessed to have witnessed what I have so far. More than that I feel blessed, as one of the organisers and the person with whom the idea for Original Cultures sort of originated, to know that our ideas, our discussions and our wishes are somehow turning to be true, and even better turning out way better than we’d expected.

I’ll keep this first blog post short as I’ve still got tons to do, but to balance the input from our team of writers and some of our artists (blogs from whom you can find here in Italian for the writers and here in Japanese for the artists) here’s an overview of the first official day, and some bits from the first few days.

The mood has been high since all the artists arrived on monday evening and tuesday morning. I think it’s fair to say that the (so far) beautiful weather, the incredible food (cooked by our resident badman chef/caterer Lisa) and the historical surroundings have a lot to do with helping to elevate the mood of all involved.

The music workshops, where Tayone (from Italy), 2tall/Om Unit (from England) and Tatsuki (from Japan) are working for 3 days creating music that will be used in the final showcase on Saturday June 6th, are taking place in the Teatro San Leonardo, a building that was first a nuns’ covent, some 400 years ago. And as we sat for dinner on the Tuesday evening in the courtyard of the Teatro it somehow felt very appropriate that we would be adding our bit of history to this beautiful place.

I’ve primarily been involved in overseeing the music workshops, as I know all 3 artists personally. They are first and foremost friends, and I am a fan of theirs as much as a friend, and so to see them come together and in the space of 8 or so hours put together an already lenghty amount of music and tracks has been incredible to say the least.

Our original thoughts, as organisers, was that on Saturday the showcase, which will last 2 hours, would be composed of roughly 4 movements, 3 x 30mins of solo (one for each artist) and one collective movement of 30mins. This went out the window by the end of the first day of workshops, with Tayone explaining that he felt much happier doing as much collectively as possible. Jim 2tall and Tatsuki both agreed, and so we decided to move forward with the first hour featuring 2tall and Tatsuki doing solos (being that they are the ‘real’ guests as Tayone lived in Bologna for years) and the second hour (or more) composed of a collective movement which the guys are creating as we speak. And truth be told, this is exactly I’d hoped for originally – the reality was that I know that asking artists to put together a 2h live show is demanding a lot, and rests on a lot of factors, especially people getting on and ‘gelling’ if you will. In the end, my hopes are turning reality it seems, as the guys are more than happy to do as much together as possible, and considering we’re about 1/3 of the way through the music workshops I’d say it’s even fair to think that we’ll have a lot more than one hour of music on our hands by the end.

And so day 2 starts. Today are more music workshops, as well as a seminar/meeting/q&a session between the musicians and music students in the late afternoon. While I sit here at home, coffee-ing it up and overseeing the content output of our event, the musicians have already started and I can’t wait to see what rested minds come up with today. Tiredness set in yesterday towards the end, and as Tayone put it “the more we do, the more we have, but also the more we come up with bits that aren’t as good”. Very true, but as 2tall countered “at the end the more we have, the more we can choose from to make sure it’s outstanding”. And that kinda sums it up for me.

I’ll leave you with a few choice quotes, as well as the amazing news that Bruno Briscik, a famed Italian multi instrumentalist with whom Tayone has collaborated on many occasions, will be joining the 3 artists for a couple of featurings on the evening of Saturday.

Oh and as for the visual art workshops, featuring the amazing talents of Ericailcane, DEM and Will Barras, well I’ve not had the time to see much yet, but you can read about it in our writers blog (Italian only for now) and know that what I have seen and spoken about with them leads me to believe that saturday will be special indeed. The 3 of them, from Italy and the UK, will essentially act as directors/choreographers for the showcase, orchestrating a full live, visual show for the music being made. And so far this show includes Chinese shadows, a black box and some very spooky figurines… Considering we’d originally hoped to have them paint walls during the day, something Ericailcane and DEM are known for, to know that they’ll now be doing something pretty much no one has ever seen them do makes me only feel even better. More pics and words soon come. Stay tuned.

From Bologna, with love (and a hell of a lot of coffee).

Laurent

PS: for those interested, so far the music is ranging from slow beats to house to jazzy hip hop and abstract instrumentals. Will post audio soon as I can.

Quotes:

You try and do an event in Italy and not make it about food!

Me, in response to Mark from Skratchworx’s tweet that Original Cultures was basically just about food.

It’s a pleasure to leave the studio, go to a new country and work with new people. The inspiration is unbelievable!

Tatsuki, at the end of the first day of workshops. With some pistaccio cookies on the side.

It just keeps getting better and better!

Jim 2tall, not sure when he said that though!

Links:
See behind the scenes on our Tumblr – originalcultures.tumblr.com
Catch the daily blogs on our site – originalcultures.org/blogs
Catch us over at Shook Magazine on the daily too – shook.fm
Hear us tweet as we go – twitter.com/og_cultures
And don’t forget to check/add/friend/fan us on the Flickr, Facebook and Myspace.


Editors’ blog – Visual arts day 1

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We are sorry but this post is not available in English yet.

Da Giorgia Soncin.

Tre poetiche, tre artisti, tre modalità lavorative che si attivano per un progetto comune: questo quello che sta succedendo nella prima giornata di workshop del progetto pilota di Original Cultures.

I tre artisti all’opera sono DEM, ERICAILCANE e WILL BARRAS. Il progetto, in continua evoluzione, verrà costantemente seguito e documentato per porre l’attenzione non solo sul risultato finale ma su quelle che sono le dinamiche creative che stanno alla base dell’intera iniziativa.

Quello che ci interessa, infatti, oltre all’evento conclusivo che si terrà sabato 6 giugno, è focalizzare l’attenzione sui processi creativi, sulla creazione di quelle sinergie artistiche che permettono ad artisti diversi di confluire in un’opera collettiva comune pur mantenendo intatta la propria individualità e la propria riconoscibilità.

Sperimentazione oltre che ricerca di sinergia poiché i tre artisti sono legati ad un background figurativo, vicino alle pratiche pittoriche piuttosto che alla costruzione scenografica in senso stretto, il work in progress di oggi e dei prossimi giorni sarà quindi un processo di ricerca fondato su più livelli: quello personale da un lato e quello artistico dall’altro ai fini di produrre non un’opera d’arte statica, ma una sorta di mondo parallelo in grado di interagire con il suono e di diventare protagonista della performance.

Lo scopo della ricerca artistica del workshop è questo: allontanarsi dalle comuni scenografie teatrali per creare una realtà in cui vengano evocati personaggi onirici in un’opera collettiva in grado di accompagnare il pubblico in un mondo immaginifico.

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Original Cultures Pilot – Programme

What? Original Cultures Pilot
When? June 3 to 6
Where? Bologna, Italy

Final programme:

• Thursday 4 June @ Sì, via San Vitale 67
Time 18,00: seminar and meeting with musicians Tayone, 2Tall/Om Unit, Tatsuki

• Friday 5 June @ Libreria Modo Infoshop, via Mascarella 24/b
Time 19,00: seminar and presentation of the Original Cultures project with all artists and staff

• Saturday 6 June @ Sì, via San Vitale 67
Time 18,00/22,00: live aperitivo with live art from Ericailcane, Dem, Will Barras + DJs
Time 22,00/24,00: live showcase with music from Tayone, 2Tall/Om Unit, Tatsuki and art from Ericailcane, Dem, Will. Directed by the artists, one of a kind showcase!

• 1/31 July @ Museo Internazionale e Biblioteca della Musica di Bologna
Installation and exhibition of all the work produced during the Original Cultures pilot + extra work commisioned for the occasion

For more information on the artists please visit our Artists section. For full details of each activity please visit our Events section.

See you there!


Original Cultures ‘09 – Visual Artists

original cultures visual artists

Original Cultures focuses on two specific strands of modern performing arts: music and visual arts. Within these two strands Original Cultures works with both established and upcoming artists from the UK, Italy and Japan.

The 4 artists chosen to represent the visual arts strand for the first year of Original Cultures activities (2009) are:

Together these 4 artists will take part in events in the UK, Italy and Japan throughout 2009 and 2010: Original Cultures Bologna 09 (June 2009), Original Cultures London ‘10 (March 2010) and Original Cultures Tokyo ‘10 (TBC).

During each event the artists will work together to create collaborative works inspired by the cultural exchange and interaction fostered by Original Cultures. This work will take place mainly during private workshops where the artists are given a brief to create new art, or in some cases given a free hand to come up with their own brief. The resulting works are then used as part of various activities such as public workshops, seminars, showcases and exhibitions.

You can view examples of the collaborative works created during Original Cultures Bologna 09 on the Original Cultures Art channel on Vimeo and our Flickr archive.


Will Barras

Will Barras

Will Barras is an illustrator and artist living and working in London. Born in Birmingham in 1973 he spent his formative years in Bristol.

His invention of composition and fluid lines provide poignant detail in liquid abstraction. The subject matter is readily familiar, but captured in a manner that seems to jar time and space with psychedelic abstraction. It is painting, which takes place. It is his way of expressing the emotional movements of this labor. It is therapy and pleasure and necessity. Though Will is more passionate about Cricket, and even the art of the poached egg than he is of Skate or Snowboarding, he is hailed as one of the visual artists who best represents these influential creative movements. This is not only an indicator of his prolific work rate and good nature, his illustrations featuring on all types of boards, clothes and mural campaigns, but more so of his unique voice, technical competency and sense of exploration.

Highly sought after both for commercial and private commissions, Will divides himself between directing Animation, designing graphics for projects that stimulate him and undertaking a truly grueling exhibition and event schedule. Last year he participated in the highly acclaimed Wooster on Spring exhibition that people waited five hours in line to see in New York City. He was invited to exhibit at the Scope Art Fair on the occasion of Art Basel, Miami at the close of 2007, having participated in shows in Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Brussels, Edinburgh, Mayrhofen, Oslo, Copenhagen, Bratislava, Cologne, Budapest, Warsaw and London earlier in the year.

Will Barras represents the UK and the visual arts as part of the Original Cultures roster of artists for 2009/2010.

Will Barras online:

Will Barras, DEM and Ericailcane – Stay Away from Light (edit2)

Will Barras interview from On Point TV