Rogério Nuno Costa, MISSED-EN-ABÎME
The Museum as Performance
O MUSEU COMO PERFORMANCE
Horário: 17:30, 19:30
Image: Jani Nummela
In 1917, Marcel Duchamp writes “1917” in an upside down urinal. In 1919,
he draws a moustache in the most important portrait of the history of art; not
the original one (he’s not Banksy), not even a reproduction (Pop was yet to be
invented), but a portrait he painted himself, copying the “original”, and, by
doing so, almost repeating Melville: I would prefer not to. In 1921, Man Ray
photographs Duchamp as Rrose Sélavy, thus completing the circle, or else paving
the way for the artist’s disappearance. A century later, we still don’t know
how to deal, historically and artistically, with these radical endeavours,
sometimes discrediting them (or assigning them new authorships...), sometimes
assuming a somewhat insurmountable historical irresolution for them. ‘MISSED-EN-ABÎME’
aims to talk about a (centennial) gesture which can be interpreted as
destruction, revelation, or simply self-imposed ostracism, as if it was
impossible to do anything more after having obliterated (almost) everything.
Duchamp spent decades doing nothing, the reason why Enrique Vila-Matas decided
to dedicate some footnotes to him in his novel about the negative authors (‘Bartleby
& Cia.’, 2000): « One time, in Paris, artist Naum Gabo asks Marcel Duchamp
the reason for having stopped paiting. “Mais que voulez-vous?”, answers
Duchamp, raising his arms in the air. “Je n’ai plus d’idées!” ». Inspired by
this impasse, ‘MISSED-EN-ABÎME’ ritualizes a queer, sacrificial isolationism,
thus daring to revisit Duchamp’s negligence while avoiding to find it a
solution — « …parce qu’il n’y a pas de problème » —, rather accepting failure,
withdrawal, invisibility and oblivion, perhaps also disappearance, as acts of
survival and resistance.
Subtitled ‘Psychobiography of a Losing Hero (1917-1921)’, this piece
consists in a three-part display (performance/installation, book and film)
meant to be shown in the space of the contemporary art museum, thus concluding
a research process on Art-History-Solitude conducted by Rogério Nuno Costa in
collaboration with artists and thinkers from Portugal and Finland.
Creation,
Direction, Edition and Performance: Rogério Nuno Costa
Production: Inês Carvalho e Lemos
Set Display: Luís Lázaro Matos
Light
Design & Technical Direction: Kristian Palmu
Sound Art:
Niko Skorpio
Movement
Dramaturgy: Pie Kär
Design Gráfico: Jani Nummela
Workshop e Dramaturgical Support: Colectivo FACA
(Andreia Coutinho & Maribel Sobreira)
Stage Photography: Miguel Refresco
Project funded by Governo de Portugal – Direção-Geral
das Artes.
Co-production: Teatro Viriato and MUDAS. Museu de
Arte Contemporânea da Madeira.
Residencies: Rua das Gaivotas 6, Là-Bas
Studio/Kaapelitehdas, Aalto University (School of Arts, Design and
Architecture), Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris – Maison du Portugal,
Campus Paulo e Silva. Preview presentations: Museum
of Impossible Forms (Helsinki, 2018), Maison du Portugal/Parfums de Lisbonne
(Paris, 2021).
Premiere: Serralves Museu de Arte Contemporânea
(Porto). Tour: Festival Contradança (Covilhã), Festival Temps d’Images/Museu
Coleção Berardo (Lisbon), Teatro Viriato (Viseu), Chão de Oliva/Festival
Periferias (Sintra), Teatro-Cine de Torres Vedras and MUDAS (Madeira).
Support: A Bela Associação (Almada), Ballet
Contemporâneo do Norte (Sta. Maria da Feira), Estrutura (Porto), Teatro
Feiticeiro do Norte (Funchal).
Related
ROGÉRIO NUNO COSTA (Amares, 1978). Performer, researcher, teacher and writer, develops
cross-disciplinary artistic work. Lives and works between Portugal and Finland.
His performances, lectures and texts explore the fields of theatre, dance,
visual arts and literature. He has studied Social Communication, Contemporary
Art History and Contemporary Culture & New Technologies, currently doing
research in Visual Cultures, Curating and Contemporary Art at Aalto University
(Finland) and as part of the Performance Studies Research Group in Minho
University. Has worked as performer, collaborator and artistic consultant with
the artists Mariana Tengner Barros, Patrícia Portela, Teatro Praga, Sónia
Baptista, Lúcia Sigalho, Teresa Prima, Joclécio Azevedo, Susana Mendes Silva,
among others. Frequent collaborator of theatre company Estrutura. Has curated
many artistic and educational projects. Guest Assistant Professor in the
Bachelor in Theatre at Minho University (Guimarães). He has also taught in the
Arts and Design Superior School (Caldas da Rainha) and ArtEZ University of the
Arts (Arnhem). Works with many artists as editor and dramaturgist. Directs the
documental project of Ballet Contemporâneo do Norte, where he is also an
associated artist. Starting in 1999, his work has already been shown in
Portugal, France, UK, Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany, Croatia, Finland,
Romania and Canada.