TIME ZONES residency with Tania Bruguera & Glenda León
Curated by Tagny Duff
VIGILANTES—the dream of reason creates monsters— by Tania Bruguera
October 19–31, 2004
During the TIME ZONES residency, Bruguera commuted weekly between Chicago and Canada (first to Montréal and then to Toronto), using these trips as an opportunity to perform for the unsuspecting audience of her fellow travellers. She also presented unannounced performance actions in Toronto. In conjunction with this work, Bruguera produced a booklet that compiled images and experiences associated with the project, including the texts of four talks that she presented (two in Montréal and two in Toronto). Each talk visited a text by one of the following performance artists: Allan Kaprow, Adrian Piper, Vito Acconci, and Francys Alys.
Bruguera describes the work in this way: “VIGILANTES—the dream of reason creates monsters— will be a series of performances dealing with the relationship between ethics and desire; with the tension that can be found in a state of emotional vigilia, which is the state between being awake and asleep. Each piece will have several layers of appreciation, either from the position of the audience or of their level of boldness. These will be pieces that talk about the false strength and the hidden fragility.”
Every Step is a Shape of Time by Glenda León
For the Toronto portion of her residency, León developed a new audio-based performative installation presented at OCADU entitled, Every Step is a Shape of Time. This work invited the public to create individual and collective aural experiences generated in the lag time between walking and listening.
León writes: “Every step we make is a small yet important instant in our lives. The direction, the speed, the decision to make one step or a sequence of them can take us to certain events or move us away from them. The sound amplification of this daily act is a way to make us reflect upon and notice infinite possibilities sculpted through time. Listening to our own footsteps is metaphorically linked to the act of listening to ourselves. Where are we going? How are we walking on this path we have chosen? In fact, have we chosen this path we are walking? I believe these are questions worth asking, however, they are ones not easily answered.”
PROGRAM & EVENTS
Performance: Every Step is a Shape of Time by Glenda León
October 29, 2004 @ 7:00pm
OCAD University, 100 McCaul Street, Toronto
Infiltration, a Panel Discussion
With Glenda León, Mideo M. Cruz, Esther Ferrer, Cheryl l’Hirondelle and moderator Johanna Householder
October 31, 2004 @ 3:00pm
XPACE, 303 Augusta Avenue, Toronto
Sponsored by 7a*11d International Festival of Performance Art