“CREATION-DESTRUCTION” a PROJECT-PERFORMANCE, BY JOSEP MARIA Rosselló FOR TINGLADO 1 OF THE COSTA WHARF AT THE PORT OF TARRAGONA.
At the Antiga Audiència in Tarragona, under the auspices of Teler de Llum, film director Juan Barrero, in the discussion following the presentation of his film “The Inner Jungle,” commented on how, in tropical jungles, the creation-destruction process accelerates. The exuberant vital power of these colossal natural reserves causes the death and decomposition of plant species with the same intensity with which it generates life.
In 1984, in Rome, within the framework of the “Festivale della Pasqua” directed by Maurizio Scaparro, I participated in a performance created for the occasion, organized by the Ministry of Culture, which was performed at the Teatro Quirino, with Enrique Morente, Manolo Sanlucar, the National Ballet of Madrid, and La Cuadra de Sevilla: “The Popular Flamenco Easter,” directed by Salvador Távora, based on an idea by José Monleón.
My intervention was a live painting. It was the first I did, and probably also the first in the world of theatre. As there were four performances, the show generated four canvases of considerable proportions, which were subsequently moved to my studio in Madrid, and then to a warehouse. For various reasons, they could not be recovered until twenty years later.
These canvases had not been properly photographed, and the project’s graphic documentation was very precarious, in contrast to the abundant press coverage the project generated. Therefore, once recovered and restored at my studio in Tarragona, they were exhibited in 2005, one by one—ten years ago now—at Tinglado 1 of the Costa Wharf, to allow for their documentation. The decision to open the doors to the public generated a parallel project, “Cadavre & Grafit,” which brought together an entire generation of young artists, as well as the participation of other groups from various artistic disciplines. All of this was documented by photographer Pep Escoda, and a year later it was presented as an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art of the Tarragona Provincial Council, under the title “The Memory of the Ephemeral.”
Now, I propose to destroy three of the four canvases, and preserve the first one, which, curiously, is the best preserved. It is currently deposited at the Museum of Modern Art of the Tarragona Provincial Council, along with other works from my collection, and once the exhibition concludes, it will return to the Museum. Two more large-format canvases, created in Madrid for “Art in the Street,” a project from 1986-87, in collaboration with art critic Santiago Amón, will be added to the destruction.
These five unframed canvases are stored rolled up in tubes; they are cotton canvases with a very light primer, made with industrial acrylic paint, and no matter how much care is taken of them, sooner or later they are doomed. It is already a miracle that they have been preserved until now, considering the circumstances and the state they were in when I recovered them. Furthermore, they were created exclusively to fulfill a function, to create a spectacle, not to endure over time.
For the first and only time, and only for one day, on January 22, 2015, these works can be seen together at Tinglado 1 of the Costa Wharf at the Port of Tarragona, and over the following ten days, the “Creation – Destruction” project will be carried out in the presence of the sculpture “Venus de Saint Phalle,” also named Mediterranean Venus, a work created in 2004 in collaboration with friends and artists Rafael Bartolozzi and Josep Royo, which will soon be installed at the Pòsit de Pescadors (Fishermen’s Guild), because it is a life-generating work, as were the archaic fertility Venuses.
After the first day, the slow process of destruction will begin, to which artists and art critics, historians, and students from the URV’s Art History department are invited, with whom we will cut the various canvases, one by one, with scissors. More than a process of destruction, it would be more accurate to call it a transformation, because the three canvases of “The Christ of the Resurrection,” once cut, will be stored in container-urns, so that they do not lose their market value. From the two “Art in the Street” canvases, once fragmented, I will select some pieces to create two artist’s books; the rest will be for visiting public who can take them, provided they contribute, voluntarily, to the financial remuneration of the artists collaborating in the second part of this project, which, starting from the white of the walls, opens doors to future generations.
As the canvases are taken down, a team of artists consisting of Foham Fonezs, Aureol Sanz, and Miquel Falgàs, selected by the Art Centre, directed by Jordi Abelló, will create their work in defense of freedom of expression, a silent protest after the bloody terrorist attack perpetrated by radical Islamists on the satirical weekly “Charlie Hebdo” in Paris. This work will grow as the exhibited works diminish, creating a furiously vital chain of “Creation-Destruction-Creation.” I will daily read the project’s presentation text, now a project-performance, with any modifications I deem appropriate. Ultimately, on the white walls of the large hall, a single canvas will remain exhibited, the first one, “The Christ of the Resurrection” or “Gypsy Christ,” the rest of the walls covered with the work generated by the new generation of artists, on the other side, standing on a single foot, “The Venus de Saint-Phalle,” and in the very center of the hall, three containers treasuring the works that, by the artist’s will, will have changed form.
“CREATION – DESTRUCTION/ THEORY OF a PROCESS.” a PROJECT BY JOSEP MARIA Rosselló FOR TINGLADO 1 OF THE COSTA WHARF AT THE PORT OF TARRAGONA. WITH THE COLLABORATION OF THE ART CENTRE. INAUGURATION ON JANUARY 22, 2015
At the “Antiga Audiència” in Tarragona, under the auspices of “Teler de llum,” film director Juan Barrero, in the discussion following the presentation of his film “The Inner Jungle,” commented on how, in tropical jungles, the creation-destruction process accelerates. The exuberant vital power of these colossal natural reserves causes the death and decomposition of plant species with the same intensity with which it generates life.
In 1984, in Rome, within the framework of the “Festivale della Pasqua,” directed by Maurizio Scaparro, I participated in a performance created for the occasion, organized by the Ministry of Culture, which was performed at the Teatro Quirino, with Enrique Morente, Manolo Sanlucar, the National Ballet of Madrid, and La Cuadra de Sevilla: “The Popular Flamenco Easter,” directed by Salvador Távora, based on an idea by José Monleón.
My intervention was a live painting. It was the first one I did, and probably also the first in the world of theatre. As there were four performances, the show generated four canvases measuring 7.50 x 2.50 meters. They were subsequently moved to my studio in Madrid and then to a warehouse. For various reasons, they could not be recovered until twenty years later.
These canvases had not been photographed, and the project’s graphic documentation was very precarious. Therefore, once recovered and restored at my studio in Tarragona, they were exhibited in 2005, one by one—soon to be ten years ago—at Tinglado 1 of the Costa Wharf, to allow for their documentation. The decision to open the doors to the public generated a parallel project, “Cadavre&Gràfit,” which brought together an entire generation of young artists, as well as the participation of other groups from various artistic disciplines. All of this was documented by photographer Pep Escoda, and a year later it was presented as an exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art of the Tarragona Provincial Council, under the title “The Memory of the Ephemeral.”
Now, I propose to destroy three of the four canvases, and preserve the first one, which, curiously, is the best preserved; it is currently deposited at the Museum of Modern Art (MAMT). Two more canvases, also of considerable dimensions, created for “Art in the Street,” a project from 1986-87, in Madrid, with art critic Santiago Amón, will be added to the destruction.
These five canvases are unframed and are stored rolled up in tubes. They are cotton canvases with a very light primer, which were made with industrial acrylic paint, and no matter how much extreme care is taken of them, sooner or later they are doomed. It is already a miracle that they have been preserved until today, considering the circumstances and the state they were in when they were recovered. Furthermore, they were created to fulfill a function, to create a spectacle, not to endure over time.
For the first and only time, these works will be exhibited all together, and over the course of eleven days, the project “Creation-Destruction/ Theory of a Process” will be carried out in the presence of the sculpture “Venus de Saint-Phalle,” also called Mediterranean Venus, a work created in 2004, in collaboration with friends and artists Rafael Bartolozzi and Josep Royo, which will soon be installed at the “Pósit de Pescadors” (Fishermen’s Guild), because it is a life-generating work, as were the archaic fertility Venuses.
After the first day dedicated to the inauguration – exhibition, the slow process of destruction will begin, to which artists and art critics, historians, and students are invited, who will cut the various canvases one by one; more than a process of destruction, it could be called a mutation. The three canvases of “The Christ of the Resurrection,” once cut, will be stored in container-urns, so that they do not lose their market value. The two “Art in the Street” canvases, once converted into small pieces, from which I will choose some to create two artist’s books, the rest will be for the visiting public who can choose and take them, provided they contribute financially to the remuneration of the second part of this project, which opens to future generations. As the canvases are taken down, a team of artists selected by the Art Centre, directed by Jordi Abelló, will create their work on the blank wall, a work that will grow as the exhibited works diminish. This is how a furiously vital chain will become effective: “Creation – Destruction – Creation.” I will daily read the project’s presentation text, now a project-performance. Ultimately, on the white walls of the large hall, a single canvas will remain exhibited, the first one, “The Christ of the Resurrection” or “Gypsy Christ,” the remaining walls covered with the work generated by the new generation of artists, on the other side, supported on a single foot, “The Venus de Saint-Phalle,” and in the middle of the hall, three containers treasuring the works that, by the artist’s will, will have changed form.
More information and images, at: < Espai Rosselló.com> – News – “CREATION – DESTRUCTION”, “ART IN THE STREET”, “THE CHRIST OF THE RESURRECTION”. ———————————–Josep Maria Rosselló————————————————————
