Workshop “Phenomena of society and critical and artistic distance”

Performing and visual arts workshop
“Phenomena of society and critical and artistic distance”

She shocked the world in the 1990s with the performance “The Reincarnation of Santa ORLAN”, a series of nine plastic surgeries that were broadcast via satellite to several museums and art galleries in Europe. ORLAN was inspired by Botticelli’s Venus to change the chin, by the Mona Lisa to change the forehead and by François Boucher’s Europa to change the lips, in addition to implanting horns on the sides of the forehead. A body constantly invaded and manipulated by the violence of heteronormative oppression, which wants to control it, and by biotechnologies, which want to model it in the light of aesthetic standards. Today, thirty years later, we have naturalised changes in identity on our bodies, but through digital filters and other technological means that do not inscribe profound transformations in the flesh. During the operations, despite the anaesthesia, ORLAN remained conscious and mixed skulls, fruits and vegetables on the stage, read texts or made drawings with her fingers and her own blood: “I wanted to talk about how much women’s bodies are mistreated. (…) I was too radical, everyone thinks I’m a monster”.

ORLAN is one of the most important French artists, author of the manifesto “Carnal Art”. She uses sculpture, photography, performance, video, 3D, video games, augmented reality, artificial intelligence and robotics, as well as scientific and medical techniques, such as surgery and biotechnology, to question social phenomena of our time. The artist praises the freedom of the body and of herself, with works that are protests against social paradigms and standards of beauty.

At the invitation of BoCA, in her first workshop in Portugal, ORLAN proposes that each participant choose an aspect of her work that they want to explore, to develop an artistic proposal related to a phenomenon of society. ORLAN questions the status of the body in society through all the social, cultural, traditional, political and religious pressures that are inscribed in the flesh, in the bodies and particularly in the bodies of women. Thus, over three days, each participant will situate and develop their own artistic approach based on concepts identified in ORLAN’s work.

TARGET AUDIENCE
M/16, students, professionals and those interested in performing arts and visual arts

REGISTRATIONS
Those interested can register by filling out the form HERE.
Max. 15 participants. Entries are made in order of reception.