Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Second of seven days alone

Thinking about our application a lot.
I will chime in tomorrow ...
I was in the city Sunday and Monday, sourcing materials for Conscious Object, and also getting Pudica fabricated again for the show in LA. Today I woke up in my bed alone, in a quiet house, and didn't speak to anyone for over three hours. It was heavenly. I started working on the mirror pieces in earnest - but getting familiar with a dremel is harder than I thought. The postcards are stand-ins, but the idea is to show two aspects of the same (story) in the same space. It's the backs, just not paintings of the backs of people. For our show, it could be interesting...here or somewhere else.  

I could be mistaken, but I think this is the location where Marina A. did a performance years ago. She may have been in Serbia, but the background looks very familiar. I love the space. Your description is really chilling. Can we work on it together tomorrow? Here is my very drowsy revision. It's a start.

Pradelna Bohnice is a contemporary project space located 5 km north of Prague's city center. Set on the grounds of a psychiatric ward, it was previously a laundry facility for the hospital’s linens as its name implies (Pradelna means Laundromat.)  In its current incarnation, is has been converted into a multi-functional space for visual and performing arts, with an emphasis on public works that engage Prague's ... (something about its population )

Bars line all the windows even though "cheerful" landscaping has been done to the grounds. The interior of the building is poorly lit, and feels cold and grey. Immediately one feels and can imagine the working conditions for hundreds if not thousands of women who washed the laundry from 1909 to 1993, and the massive amounts of mechanized cleaning hiding the stains of hierarchy between patient and doctor. (we need to clarify this...another sentence perhaps linking this relationship). Holes and missing tiles are seen throughout the space, as well as randomly placed slabs of cement where machines and tables were arranged. The central entrance has very high ceilings which somewhat dwarf the visitor but is similar to an entrance of a chapel. Sound echoes up, especially high heeled shoes on tile. This tiling continues half-way up the walls. (There must have been gallons of water pouring in and out of this space at one point.) 






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