performances + installations
Inner and Outer Cycles
2009 - ongoing
This performance will be resultant of a process of growing gardens. The elements that constitute a garden belong to the kingdom of nature. As a composition, a garden is a human construction, a process with a purpose.
For this project, as much as the arrangement of the garden, matters the process of growing the plants. There is dedication in this learning/growing process, important for both the plants and the gardener.
Aesthetic composition of the gardens imply an interrelationship of the time of the gardener (rituals, meditation and introspection), the time of the plants (growing and developing in relationship with other plants, temperature, watering and sun light) and the time of nature (moon cycles, sun cycles, biological functions of every species). Gardens have been ways to pass on knowledge, throughout generations and cultures, through exchange and trade of goods. Both the aesthetic composition and the interconnection of the time of the gardener with the time of the plants are subjects for development of audio and visual material. These will be the elements of a narrative presented in an audiovisual performance.
A garden is a mutable and endless art project.
While artist in residence at MoKS (Mooste, Estonia) during May 2009 I grew a composition of natural elements to which I called a garden. This is the second of three gardens that constitute this project. In gardening there is no end to achieve, only he process is relevant. As an artistic project, an aesthetic composition, at each moment the garden is a unique piece of art. The blog documents the residency.
Journeys Through Time & Space
2006/07
To know more about this work and associated research, please check iRes website.
Journeys Through Time & Space is an audiovisual installation which requires input from the visitors.
This project reflects on the action of traveling where arrival and
departure are irrelevant. Starting October 2006 and for a year I have been recording my travellings. The footage was converted into audio and visual material to be presented as a audiovisual performance. Audio and visuals were developed in collaborations with Portuguese musician Pedro Lima. Tim Shear came to the team later to develop the dance floor and all other technicalities regarding the installation.
Through the installation, visitors form a collective and ongoing jam session by mixing strategically positioned video and audio material.
Audio is composed, from the footage, by Pedro Lima, videos are
selected by Ana Carvalho and the physical interface by Tim Shear.
The interactive floor is constituted by nine tiles which trigger audio
and visual clips and effects. The audience interacts by selecting one or more tiles with their feet, however any impact works, such as hands or knees.
Plan B from Outer Space
2005
This event is an invitation to participation; people attending were the performers. A birthday party is a good reason for people to get together, to dance and play. My aim was to create a generous space for enjoyment to happen. The creation of this event was also a way of getting people together, in this case, Luis who lives in Portugal and Brendan who lives in Falmouth. As AIHP we organized the event. Most of my friends living in Falmouth participated one way or another; cooking, serving chocolate cake and wine, supplying electricity and helping with setting up the event.
This is the third even organized by Art in Hidden Places of Falmouth.
To make the event happen I asked for help from my friends Brendan Byrne and Luis Costa. Together we constructed an interactive audiovisual installation in a cosy and green site, with great views, of this small and artistic town called Falmouth.
Through e-mail people received instructions which they had to follow to find the location of the event. As a visual help, the invitation to the event also had a picture of the place. People were invited to bring wine and sweets to share.
The space was composed of two areas taking advantage of the geographical features of the location. From the top of the hill to the big tree that marks the center of this garden, there is an area of grass where people were seating watching the film Faster Pussycat, Kill! Kill!. This way we had an outdoors living room space, open to everyone from the random passers-by to the invited guests. All cakes, bowls with sweets and wine was generously shared between everyone.
The element of the tree in this garden is of major importance as a marker of levels in the landscape due to its considerably big size. The second area was located under this big tree. A mirror ball hanged from the tree would reflect sparkling little lights all over the place, on the tree and on the floor. From this space, the view over the river is fantastic. This event provided Falmouth with a momentary outdoor and very small dancing space. The music, selected by Luis, was at my request, romantic. It would stop every 30seconds and to be played again it was necessary to wave at the sensor (nicely done by Brendan). This would made whoever was dancing run towards the sensor to make it play the song again.
Play with Photoshop
2005
More information about this event available online at
Art In Hidden Places blog
Review by Magda Tyzlik-Carver
This is an experiment and it serves the purpose of exploring visual ideas and narratives in real time.
I have been thinking about the possibilities of Photoshop since I had to prepare a lecture about it. Why do we must tools the way we are told to and why not find our own way?
I remember, back at school, to explore with my colleagues several liquids (coffee and egg for example) as paints and forks as pens. Experiment. It is necessary the ability to explore even when we have been educated and trained the techniques and became professionals in art.
Play With Photoshop is an experiment, a serious one turned into a live event. This is a collaboration with Ben Carver who played the music along the visuals. The half hour of our performance is resultant from conversations and experiments we did together.
My Diamonds are Forever Yours
2004
My Diamonds Are Forever Yours is a project about non-fixed structures. The theme of the text is non-fixity of gender. The final work is fluid and changeable. Mixing the visual information produced from research, or part of it, different results are created, the results are presented in several ways: a video work, an installation but the main presentation of the work is an interactive web site.
The visuals result from a cyberfeminist interpretation of a text written by Magenta Interior. Through a process of collecting different meanings for several words and concepts of the original text, images, animations and small videos were produced in order to take the meanings further into visual language. Then other videos were produced to work as final result of all this research. At the end, the elements are ready to generate different outcomes from a pool of building blocks.
This work, My Diamonds Are Forever Yours, is rooted on the oldest ways of telling stories. By word of mouth, story telling are ways to pass knowledge on to the next generations.