On Saturday night, I did not make it back to the atelier after a heavy supper of chicken cordon bleu, cabbage slaw and potatoes. That, coupled with a really long but productive day, meant that when I went to lie down for an hour, I woke up the next morning.
The long productive day went like this: breakfast, then studio from 8am to 1pm, back to the studio until 445pm, rush back the hotel to look presentable to attend two art openings, a group show of Haitian art at the subterranean galleries of the Inter-Art Foundation, and, one hour later, the second show at the cultural centre (behind the studio), of Sudanese art. A small glass of wine at the two stops, the fresh evening air… then the dinner. No wonder.
Organ recital at RC church
Sunday morning, I was up with the birds, and the church bells. It was a standard day of work at the atelier, but as the day wore on, there was a buzz that grew louder, a buzz that had nothing to do with the circular saws used by the marble and wood sculptors outside. We were eagerly anticipating the first edition of Inter-Art Night Art Without Borders, a night painting session in the town square, followed by an organ concert at the Roman Catholic church, followed by (yes, we do a lot of stuff in this camp!) a midnight exhibition of the works created in the town square. Oh, and we also were privileged to view a series of happenings and video projections organised by artist and camp organiser, Stefan Balog http://www.inter-art.ro/balog/.
Falling Angels by Stefan Balog – and night paintings.
My first morning in Aiud, I did a walkabout and saw these wooden sculptures in the town park. I thought they were great, but forgot to find out who the artist was. Last night, I realised they were Stefan’s project titled Falling Angels. They were launched with a medieval dramatic production complete with flambeaux wielding hooded figure and gothic music by American group Nox Arcana, which means ‘mysteries of the night’.
White shadow by Georgiana Cozma
Around 10pm, Romanian artists Georgiana Cozma and Andrea Szocs presented performances of shadows and reflections, and then created a white shadow, using plaster casts of body parts placed within a white outline similar to the outline at a crime scene. Creepy as all hell in the cold night, but effective.
It was about to get creepier. Italian-Spanish artist Giuseppe Strano Spitu and German painter Deniz Hasenöhrl, sat on two stools among the most beautiful red and peach Aiud roses scattered on the floor of a metal cage. They faced each other, and then began coiling a double-ended hangman’s noose around each other’s throats.
From a calm, seated position, they took turns: he spat in her face, then rose to embrace her, and coiled the rope around her neck. Then she got up and hugged him and coiled the rope around his neck and sat down and waited for him to do the spitting and the coiling… until the rope ran out. They pulled, the rope snapped and it was all over.
You really need to see the video, which Deniz says will be live within a month; my photo does not do this justice. When Guiseppe built the cage right outside our atelier, I thought, hmmmmm minimalist sculpture. But their performance titled Heaven’s Gate, spoke graphically to fatal attractions and relationships.
Heaven’s Gate by Giuseppe Strano Spitu and Deniz Hasenöhrl
The night was cold and still. Gothic music bounced off the surrounding walls – perfect ambiance for stellar theatre. Bravo.