Portable museum of rebellious art: ‘W(e) A(re) R(ebellious)’

Мария Налбантова. A Good Deal, 2021; видео документация на сайт-специфична инсталация, 2'47", цветна, стерео звук; сапун, вода, пигменти, UniCredit Studio, София, България; камера: Господин Господинов-Гепи, музика: Антони Райжеков; фотограф: Дориян Тодоров

Димитър Солаков. Local Rebellions, 2021; 0'49", видео, стерео звук

Антон Терзиев. Happy New Order, 2006/2006; пърформанс с Катя Дамянова и в сътрудничество с група УЛТРАФУТУРО; видеодокументация на пърформанс, 40'00", стерео звук, (фрагмент, 4'50”); София, България

Алла Георгиева. Български сувенири, 2006; видео анимация, 1'

Калин Серапионов. Почти красиво, 2003; видео инсталация; DVD, Pal, 4:3, звук, 9'15", (фрагмент, 1'28")

Destructive Creation. В крак с времето, 2011; акция в публично пространство; видео/фото документация, 0'13", стерео звук

Красимир Терзиев. Monu-mental (REDUX), 2011 - 2023; 13'33", видео, HD 1080P, PAL 16:9, цветен, звук, (фрагмент 3:13“, кроп 1:1) Видео дистрибуция: Argos Centre for Art & Media, Брюксел концепция, видео и звукова редакция: Красимир Терзиев камера: Калин Серапионов; аудио-мастериг: Александър Янев

Лъчезар Бояджиев. „Във ваканция...“, 2004 – в прогрес; част от цикъл на приблизително 80 дигитални принта на хартия; видео интервю, 5'48", стерео звук камера: Калин Серапионов

Венелин Шурелов. Един човек : Градско електронно тяло::, 2020; интерактивна инсталация в публично пространство; Аз Мисля, 12h33min15sec; 28.11.2020, София; видео документация, 05'38", стерео звук

Боряна Росса и УЛТРАФУТУРО. Гражданска позиция, 2007; филм, пърформанс, 8'15", цветен, стерео звук (фрагмент, 2'48"); Орлов мост, София

Иван Мудов. Трафик Контрол, 2001; пърформанс; видео документация, 5'53", стерео звук; Never stop the action, Association for Contemporary Art, Грац, Австрия; фотография: Илина Коралова

Правдолюб Иванов. Черни балони, 2013; 1'09", HD видео, стерео звук

Станислав Беловски. No more heroes any more, 2022; дигитален колаж / Стенсил видео документация, 0'21", стерео звук

Красимира Буцева. Строго секретно!, 2020; част от операция “Гръм” видео откъс, 3'07", BW, звук стерео

Венета Андрова. Ear Cleaning, 2018; анимационен филм, 2'50", откъс, стерео звук режисура: Венета Андрова; превод: Аспарух Дончев

Project by Antoni Rayzhekov with the participation of Alla Georgieva, Anton Terziev, Boryana Rossa & ULTRAFUTURO, Venelin Shurelov, Veneta Androva, Dimitar Solakov, Ivan Moudov, Kalin Serapionov, Krasimira Butseva, Krassimir Terziev, Luchezar Boyadjiev, Maria Nalbantova, Pravdoliub Ivanov, Stanislav Belovski and Destructive Creation.

The exhibition “W(e) A(re) R(ebellious)” presents 15 established and young Bulgarian artists with a “rebellious” artistic practice and a selection of their works created in the twenty-first century. The works are displayed in an unusual multimedia interactive object, acting as a “portable museum of rebellious art”, accompanied by 15 video stills/photographs of the videos and video-documentation of performances.

The project begins in 2019 as an “exhibition-in-a-book”. It is the result of Antoni Rayzhekov’s participation in the creative residency “Hallein Academy” in Austria, organized by the media festival Schmiede with the theme “WAR”.

Initially, the project-publication includes short interviews and biography, video stills and photographs of the selected works. The selection is based on the artists’ courage to comment on important issues of our times in an extraordinary and innovative creative way, becoming expressions of the dynamic transformation of Bulgarian society.

The W(e)A(re)R(ebellious) project reverses the classic process of creating an exhibition and then publishing a catalogue, first creating a catalogue that was published in the collaborative book YnselBook: WAR (2020). Based on this publication, Rayzhekov created the interactive multimedia object “portable museum of rebellious art” to present the artists in a physical gallery space using the contemporary tools of new media. The exhibition simultaneously archives and exhibits 4 generations of Bulgarian artists in an interactive multimedia object, which further contributes to the engagement of the audience as active participants in the exhibition. The project is both an artistic and curatorial endeavour that attempts to appreciate the fluidity of transgressive artistic practices from an Eastern European and media art perspective, integrating key artworks by several generations of contemporary Bulgarian artists.

Within the exhibition we present a different, bold, poetic, inventive and informed face of Bulgaria through the artistic practices and interviews of the 15 selected artists/collectives. The project explores a speculative reality in which the processes in Eastern Europe are in fact an early warning of possible threats to democratic society that may reach Western Europe. Can Western societies learn from Eastern Europe and what can they learn?

The exhibition is realized with the financial support of the National Culture Fund, program “CREATION” 2023. The project is also supported by the DALAB Foundation, Structura Gallery, Photosynthesis, ROBOTEV and the Schmiede Media Festival, Austria.

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