Venice Art Biennale June 1-November 24, 2013 - Reflection Center for Suspended Histories. An attempt

artists:

Apparatus 22,

Irina Botea and

Nicu Ilfoveanu,

Karolina Bregula,

Adi Matei,

Olivia Mihălțianu,

Sebastian Moldovan

curator:

Anca Mihuleț

Commissioner:

Monica Morariu

Deputy Commissioner:

Alexandru Damian

Reflection center for suspended histories. An attempt is one of the two exhibitions representing Romania at the 55th Venice Art Biennale.

Reflection center for suspended histories. O încercare is a silent exhibition that analyzes minor histories suspended behind major events. The project began with an investigation of the current status of art history in Romania, in the modern understanding of the discipline, excluding the bracket of the communist period, which produced a physical and imaginative cork, along with the blocking of certain mental and visual processes. Given that history is not innocent, that it implies a certain degree of physical, visual or conceptual violence, our intention was not so much to reveal the visible dimension of the exhibition as to reveal its invisible center. Talking about history has a therapeutic value.

Between June 1 and November 24, the exhibition will become a temporary institution, a pilot center for reflection and analysis of the relevance of art and visual history. The Center of Reflection for Suspended Histories will be located on the ground floor of an old Venetian palace, Palazzo Correr, which since 1930 has housed the Romanian Institute for Culture and Humanistic Research.

Although the determining actions are specific and possess a strong regional flavor, their message and visual outcome are universal. The trapped thought in Smoking Room, the simulacrum of Queen Maria of Romania's golden room in Olivia Mihălțianu's installation, the illusory world of counterfeit emotions and experiences assessed by Apparatus 22 in Portraying Simulacra, the fear induced by Karolina Bregula's Fire-Followers - a commentary on the necessity of setting fire to old art to make room for the new, the suspension in time and space of a possible movement, discussed by Adi Matei in the animation Bird in a Room, the interviews examining how the imagination operates inside the memorial houses filmed by Irina Botea and Nicu Ilfoveanu, or the sanitary installation that Sebastian Moldovan presents as a pseudo-architectural element, as a sign of inhabitation, all these are elements of action, of taking possession of a space that must be used for both the works of art and the visitors. Throughout the exhibition, the viewer is thus offered a generous personal space, which also takes on the characteristics of a perfect hiding place.

Visitors arriving at the center can access a questionnaire to assess the extent to which they have falsified their own lives. They can then experience solitude in the meditative space of the golden room. The institutional atmosphere is emphasized by plumbing that climbs the walls and ceiling like a beanstalk. The custodians of the three memorial houses address visitors by describing their working environment. The living room, open as an annex to the original space, surprises the viewer with a half-silenced image, accessible only through furtive glances and only to those visitors whose curiosity compels them to explore yet another section of the Reflection Center for Suspended Histories. The movie projected on the back wall of the darkened room enhances the experience that combines fear and uncertainty with a dilemmatic history of art.

artists:

Apparatus 22,

Irina Botea &

Nicu Ilfoveanu,

Karolina Bregula,

Adi Matei,

Olivia Mihălțianu,

Sebastian Moldovan

curator:

Anca Mihuleț

commissioner:

Monica Morariu

deputy commissioner:

Alexandru Damian

Reflection Center for Suspended Histories. An attempt is one of the two projects representing Romania at the ^55th edition of La Biennale di Venezia.

Reflection Center for Suspended Histories. An attempt is a rather silent exhibition, conceived as a center for analyzing minor, unattractive histories, suspended behind major events. The exhibition started with an investigation on the status of modern art history in Romania, bracketing the communist period that has acted as a physical and imaginative cork, blocking certain mental and visual processes. Taking into account that history is not innocent, and that it involves a certain degree of physical, visual or conceptual violence, the intention was to uncover the invisible core of the exhibition, rather than its visible dimension. Moreover, talking about history can have a therapeutic value.

From June^1st until November^24th, the exhibition will become a temporary institution, a model for a center of reflection and thinking about the relevance of art history and visuality. The reflection center for suspended histories will be situated at the ground floor of an old Venetian palace, the Palazzo Correr, a building that since 1930 has been hosting the Romanian Institute for Culture and Humanistic Research.

Even though determining actions of the artists are specific and have a strong regional tint, their message and visual result are universal. The thought captive within the simulacrum of Queen Mary's golden chamber in Olivia Mihălțianu's installation Smoking Room, the evaluation of the illusory world of fake emotions and experiences depicted by Apparatus 22 in Portraying Simulacra, the fear induced by Karolina Bregula's film Fire- Followers that comments upon the necessity of burning old art in order to make space for new art, the suspension of a possible movement in time and space discussed in Adi Matei's animation Bird in a Room, the interviews examining the way in which imagination operates within memorial houses filmed by Irina Botea and Nicu Ilfoveanu, or Sebastian Moldovan's sanitary installation becoming a pseudo-architectural element, and mark of habitation, are all elements of agency, and an the assuming of a space that is commonly shared by the artworks and their viewers. Therefore, the visitor is offered a generous personal space along the exhibition parcours, which has also developed the features of a perfect hideaway.

The visitor entering the center can access an online questionnaire evaluating the degree of fake in her/his life. Subsequently, she/he can experience solitude in the meditative space of the golden chamber. The institutional atmosphere is enhanced by a sanitary installation creeping on the wall and ceiling like a climbing bean plant. The custodians of three memorial houses address the visitor describing their working environment. The drawing room that has been opened as an addition to the initial space surprises the viewer by a hidden image that can be only peeped at and is only made available to the curious beholder who is ready to explore another department of the reflection center for suspended histories. The film projected on the back wall of the dark room completes the experience, which combines fear and uncertainty with a dilemmatic art history.