write-up
Goings On - David Medalla
David Medalla, FF alum, continues his translation event of Franklin Furnace's Mission Statement from English to Tagalog
David Medalla, FF alum, continues his translation event of the Mission Statement of Franklin Furnace from the original English text into Tagalog (the Filipino national language). David Medalla began the event last May 8, 2008, on the wooden esplanade of the Bibliothèque Nationale de Paris during the inauguration of LONDON BIENNALE 2008. Shortly after the initial translation, David Medalla created an impromptu performance with two French monocyclists, father and son, videotaped on YouTube by Marko Stepanov.
A few days later, David Medalla continued translating (in his head) while crossing the English channel with American artist Nelson Loskamp of chaircut and Heather White from Brooklyn, New York, en route to Dover, England, for the White Nave exhibition at the Charlton Centre curated by Rachel Daniels, and the 'Moveable Feast' at the Louis Armstrong Pub in Dover organised by Joanna Jones, Clare Smith and Alma Tischler.
A couple of days later, after an evening's conversation in Bracknell, England, about 'boites en valises' with Adam Nankervis (the director of MUSEUM MAN), in particular, the 'boite in valise' which Adam Nankervis created in Valparaiso, Chile, incorporating volcanic dust, David Medalla continued his translation event.
Last Friday, May 16, 2008, David Medalla flew from Stansted Airport, England, to Bergamo in Italy. On Saturday, May 17, 2009, in the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore at the 'citta alta' (city on high) in Bergamo, in front of the tomb of the composer Donizetti, David Medalla recited sections of his translation into Tagalog of the Franklin Furnace Mission Statement (in polyphonic style) to an enthusiastic group of Italian students and foreign tourists.
On Sunday, May 18, 2008, David Medalla's translation of the text (in palindromic extracts) are incorporated in his performance inspired by the 'cocodrillo di Ponte Nossa', curated by Franca and Emilio Morandi, in the Arte Studio Morandi.
On Tueday, May 20, 2008, David Medalla will give another recitation of his translation as the prologue to his lecture at the Accademia di Belli Arte di Firenze (the Academy of Fine Arts of Florence), introduced by Italian art historian Vittoria Biasi.
David Medalla will continue his translation event at the Bocca della Verità on May 21, 2008, and at the Studio RA, directed by Raffaella Losapio, in Rome, on May 22, 2008.
David Medalla will recite the final version of his translation of the text of the Franklin Furnace Mission Statement from the original English into Tagalog during the Finale of LONDON BIENNALE 2008, on August 2, 2008, during the "Long Shore Drift", curator: Katie Sollohub, on the beach at Brighton, England. David Medalla is dedicating his translation and his series of nomadic performances to Martha Wilson (founder of Franlin Furnace), Harley Spiller, Eva and Alberto Florentino. |
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PARIS - Marisa Rueda
Rain and sun in our first day in Paris, opening day, very much like the weather was in London when we left.
The Tour Eiffel (ET), so enormous It is I did not remember. Near this incredible mechanic structure any event will take a different dimension undoubtedly. First of May, “dia de los trabajadores”, was full of people whose only purpose it looks was to go to the ET.
Muguets flowers are offered to friends in Paris on the 1rst of May.
I was very lucky to find the London Biennale group that was underneath a tree that supposes to take care of the rain.
Jill extended the first tablecloth on the floor I waited for Nati and Pablo. Nati is daughter of artist friends from Buenos Aires a painter Carlos Kravetz and writer/psychologist Denise Najmanov . They helped me to extend the tablecloth. We opened the bags of foods that I bought over a marvelous tablecloth design by Duda. Duda is a jeweller designer that lives in Bucios' Brazil. Strawberries, mugets flowers, a huge brioche, bagets monge, pate de foi, pate given by Maria everything looked appetizing nearly an installation. Wine was served meanwhile a walking sculpture came towards us, our first image of the opening introduced by Agnes.
This image broke the ice. That instant that is always so difficult to break was broken by this white and black translation on stills of the strange brown monster under which her South foot we were...and the Biennale opened.
This theatrical figure was followed by an oversize body poster that covered Nino's body with the company of Medalla's camp towel with the image of the Eiffel.
Photos, photos, photos, films, films, fotos, fotos, filmacion, photos, photos, fotos.
We missed Adam's speech and his company and we toast for his recover.
Guy proposed his scholar base theory about Courbet's premonition of the existence of David Medalla one hundred years ago painting him in his huge picture at the Musee D'Orsay. This is a special subjective perspective of the future that Guy discovered.
Courbet's imagination discovered by Guy surprised us all and make us wonder how this artist could predict the knowledge of David's” coming”.
In this picture appears what Guy called a monkey with a hat that uncannily looks, as Guy's wife also thinks, like David. David's face was of expectancy and slowly begun to accept this kind of history base, English humor, ironic performance. Guy sustains that this theory could not be scholarly proved but who knows first comes the creation of the concept that opens a possibility. Can artists predict the future?
This story illustrated with copies of Courbet's picture exacerbated everybody's imagination and in the following days a term was search, and build and maybe a Pastneopresentfuturepractice begun. I picked the idea up for two photos in my “boite in valise” and between David and me we begun to look for a term on the third day. Well more of this later.
"Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas Making Mock Hash Cakes for Picasso and Matisse" Installation by David.
We were offered a paper mask of Gertrude Stein and Guy was holding a picture of Alice B. Toklas done by Adam. A script was read followed by the group repeating some parts. It is a pity that Alice was not there so she could invite all of us with a piece of the mentioned cookies.
Looking forward to see this performance done again with Adam and real cookies.
I gave the present of Alice's book to Maria Futerman, friend of mine who lives in Paris learning and living philosophy and art, some years ago and she tried several recipes. Maria has been several days looking to the Biennale work.
We were drinking wine with one hand and tea offered by Trolley in his special cups on the other, cold by the way.
So far the performances, including David's had an intimate internal group atmosphere but then we followed Giuseppe Schiatarella from Naples, Italy, who performed "Eros and the Peace” in a quai on the Seine's front, where he extended a big piece of material on the wall and dressed in a white suit painted a white dove on a heart, and wrote LB 2008. Here appeared another of David's camp towels of the ET (Eiffel Tower) and we all finished painting on it being observed and surrounded by families, tourists and kids.
The structure of the Biennale was established, firm and symbolic as the ET
We all together went for dinner.
And this was the end of the first day.
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Dear LB artists - Clare Smith
We had a great day on 12 May here in Dover at the Moveable Feast with David et al. I've also uploaded the pictures and the description below at http://www.dadonline.eu/blog/
7 hours 20 minutes and 30 seconds of feasting in Dover at the Louis Armstrong pub
The Louis Armstrong pub in Dover hosted the feasting and performing on Monday 12 May that formed Dover’s Moveable Feast organized by London Biennale artists Clare Smith, Joanna Jones and Tischler Wood.
The afternoon began slowly with conversation around the bountiful table and in the beautiful, sun-drenched garden of the Louis. David Medalla, founder of the London Biennale, and "The Americans", Nelson Loskamp and Heather White, were expected to arrive in the late afternoon on the eurolines bus from Paris. Due to their coach being delayed by high-level scrutiny by suspicious customs officials, the feasting and performing started without them and without Clare who had gone down to meet them.
Everyone finally met at the opening of The Walls in Three Places at the new Charlton Art Centre, which included work by quite a few London Biennale artists.
After the opening, the Moveable Feast continued at the Louis. The Louis Armstrong pub has a history as the first and last music venue for groups touring to and from the UK and mainland Europe. Equidistant from Paris and London the pub is owned by Jackie Bowles, widow of the enthusiastic trombonist and inspired band leader Bod Bowles. Jackie had made a wonderful Chilli con Carne, which punctuated the feast all evening.
Tischler Wood compered the performances which started with Chris Burke reciting the contents of his boite en valise, followed by Poppy Jackson and her house; then came Nelson Loskamp's electric chair cut featuring David Medalla bound and gagged in red, white and blue while he had his yin and yang hair cut. Interspersed were performances by flautist, Paul Cheneour, electric double bass player, Clive Fletcher and percussionist David Robinson on the Congas; they were then also joined by saxophonist Anne Muddiman, accompanied by Porsche Nelson on the piano playing “Shadow of your Smile” and other tunes; earlier Robbie Kravitz had given a solo rendering of “La Mer” but in the evening was accompanied as she sang “My Funny Valentine” and “Fly me to the moon.”
David dedicated his one-minute impromptu with his 'Olympic Torch' with flashing lights to Anne Muddiman, whose birthday it was.
The finale performance by the evening's hosts, Alma Tischler Wood, Joanna Jones and Clare Smith was a culinary recitation in 3 languages – English, German and Chinese – inspired by Foreign Investment.
pictures at http://www.dadonline.eu/blog/
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