BACK

During the pre-opening days of the Venice Biennale, vessel was welcomed by Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa and Al-bunduqiyya to present on the occasion of Open Studios – Atelier BLM 2011 . A public conference was held on Friday, June 3 rd at the BLM studios and was attended by members of all involved associations as well as artists, visiting curators and the general public. Presentations by BLM and vessel were followed by an open question session for the audience.
Anna Santomauro and Viviana Checchia each introduced vessel and discussed its regional and international goals. Checchia described the curatorial residency program and future projects of vessel. Guest curators Pieter Vermeulen and Arzu Yayintas were presented and each shared briefly about their own work and experience at vessel. When the topic of vessel’s reception in the region arose, guest curator Pieter Vermeulen described the tendency among his Northern European colleagues to exoticize Bari and Apulia in general. He recognized the existing opportunity to re-educate other territories about the actual situation in both Bari and Apulia and thus remove the stigma of “exotic.”
BLM president Angela Vettese opened with a welcome message for vessel, and affirmation of the similar goals of the two organizations. BLM and vessel were referred to as “sister foundations” due to their work with young artists and the creation of centers for documentation. vessel’s similar mission was the reason for its invitation to visit the much more established and venerated BLM.
Furthermore, Vettese mentioned the geographic similarity between vessel and BLM. When speaking of regional differences in Italy, “North vs. South” is usually the starting point. However, she shifted the focus to “East vs. West” in Italy, and the binding together of Eastern Italian regions not only through parallel geography and the resulting cultural similarities but also through their proximity to the nearby Balkan and Mediterranean territories. These geographical interests produce a further commonality between BLM and vessel.
Vincenzo Estremo of vessel elaborated further on the concept of eastern unity by mentioning Saint Nicolas who is a central historical and folkloric figure of both eastern Italy and the nearby Balkan/Mediterranean territories. In the past, cultural exchange between cities often followed the pilgrimage routes dedicated to the Saint, and his status as patron saint of harbors, sailors and ships further united his legend with trade and travel between the east coast of Italy and countries across the way. Specifically, Venice and Bari were both cities sacred to the worship of Saint Nicolas and functioned as important sites on the pilgrimage paths.
Although the figure of Saint Nicolas may have been a unifying factor in the past, he serves as an archetype for the present-day interaction and cultural exchange that continues between eastern territories. Now, collaboration and unity can be achieved through the work of cultural foundations and their interest in preserving the ties between eastern Italian regions themselves, and their Balkan/Mediterranean neighbors.
During the question session, the concept of East/West was explored further. In response to an inquiry about the reasons for choosing to investigate eastern territories, Checchia stated the peculiarities of the Apulia region and particularly Bari with its varying cultural groups. The variegated population of Bari is further evidenced by the linguistic groups present in Bari: Provençal French as well as Albanian and Greek dialects. Thus, Bari is a perfect environment for a project which deals not only with the east of Italy, but also with the east of Europe.
The presentation provided an opportunity for BLM and vessel to share their similar visions, and bring the public into their investigation. The discussion centered around cultural identities as well as the role of historical events and geographical placement on a territory. Throughout the presentation, the desire not cultural erasure, but for cultural collaboration between regions and countries reemerged as a central theme.

REPORT

On the occasion of Open Studios – Atelier BLM 2011, the Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa, in collaboration with Al-bunduqiyya, presents vessel: a non-profit space for the contemporary art of Puglia. In alignment with BLM's similar goals, vessel aims to the promotion of young artists from a specific region (Puglia). However, vessel also uses settings and methods that point to the exchange and sharing of artistic practices in other places too. The location selected for the presentation---SS Cosma e Damiano's Cloister where some of the BLM artists' ateliers are hosted---has become the perfect incubator for new collaborations thanks to its laboratory dimensions.

Program:

Performance by Nico Angiuli, Leonardo Spedicato monta ogni mattina sul Claas duo gt8000.

“My name is Spedicato Leonardo, my mother was a housewife, my father was a peasant, he used to give names to the tractors as if they were cattle. I've been an agricultural worker all my life long; I was restored after the change to the 'Leggero' law n171, the year 1952 – the one which excluded us from the country. July 11, 2053, exactly five years ago, I almost died.”

"Leonardo Spedicato monta ogni mattina sul Claas gt8000" is a monologue by Nico Angiuli which investigates the plausible directions and connections between men and machines in the future. The monologue is interpreted on this occasion by Sarah Toich.

Talk by vessel

This year will always be remembered as a really important moment of change and progress. The revolution which started in the Middle East has overrun our minds and our territory to become part of our history. We are, indeed, both physically and emotionally similar to each other, and we are sharing this fundamental step in the direction of democracy and looking for a new open society.

For this reason, we would like to dedicate our activity, both with the committee and the curators in residency, to this present situation. The focus will be on the evolution/involution of history and how these phenomena are shared in art. The return of real and documentary photography could be viewed as a symptom of this conjunction and mingling between history and art.

With: Viviana Checchia, Vincenzo Estremo, Anna Santomauro, Pieter Vermeulen, Arzu Yayintas.

Performance by Gastrovisione, Iconofagia.

Gastrovisione presents another edible deception where the food and its image play with the eyes of the viewer in a scene referencing the real and the sensible trying to satisfy a cultural and physiological appetite and create a particular harmony between body and mind. The Gastrovisione, suggested by vessel team, will be required to interact with local products coming from the region Apulia.

Performance by Andrea Napolitano, in collaboration with Nicolas Atlan, Interferenze.

Andrea Napolitano's Interferenze is a sound and video live show which elaborates and interacts with sound waves in order to generate a virtual and immersive 3D space. In collaboration with sound-designer Nicolas Atlan.

Fondazione Bevilaqua La Masa

Born in 1898, the Fondazione Bevilaqua La Masa – City of Venice institution, is not an exhibition venue, but rather a flexible device for the promotion of Venice Contemporary Art. With its two exhibition venues, twelve ateliers, two guest quarters and different outside spaces, the foundation stages collective exhibitions for young artists as well as a personal exhibition for international leading artists, with meetings and talks in collaboration with the university and international and Italian art centers. The Atelier's program has, in particular, gained increasing notoriety in the last years as a growth and visibility factor for the assignee artists of SS Cosma and Damiano Cloister's spaces.

Al-bunduqiyya

Al-bunduqiyya is a curatorial project started three years ago by Cecilia Tirelli and the collaboration of Sabrina Lucchetta and Chiara Lunardelli. Al-bunduqiyya is the Arab word for Venice---a unique example among European cities---for which there is no translation. Its origin dates back to the late 1st century and it means “different”, “bastard”, in the sense of mixed origins. Later on, in the 14th century, the word acquired a further meaning, “rifle”, probably because Venetians were the first to introduce firearms to Arab countries. Its aim is to create situations in which both the artists and the audience can share, exchange and implement visual and expressive communication.

vessel

vessel will be an independent, non profit space devoted to contemporary art; a dynamic container which intends to build an artistic and social bridge between Apulia and the surrounding areas of the Mediterranean, Central and Eastern Europe. vessel focuses on existing mechanisms in those areas, in order to relate them to each other and create new cultural forms. vessel will create situations in which confrontation, interaction and creative process can facilitate models of knowledge-sharing that are not limited to the enjoyment of art, but which consider participation as key for the production of new forms of expression.

With the support of Consorzio Delle Cento Masserie Crispiano (TA).
And Pasticceria Marchini time, Venice.

Info:

Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa
www.bevilacqualamasa.it
press@bevilacqualamasa.it

Al-bunduqiyya
www.al-bunduqiyya.com
info@al-bunduqiyya.com

vessel
www.vesselartproject.org
info@vesselartproject.org