the wallpaper project:portrait of a hidden self
Artists are creators.
They must be willing to take risks and trust in their own creative intuition. To be an artist is to be courageous and brave, to challenge the status quo. Artists come from all walks of life, from different socio-economic backgrounds, cultures, and beliefs. The experiences they live shape their view of the world, their ability to express themselves, and their self-esteem.
Their work reflects the many layers of creativity they possess. They take ideas and transform them into tangible works of art that captures the imagination and speaks to the innermost depths of the soul. With each layer of creativity every artist brings their own unique perspective to their work through their life experiences, their values, and their beliefs.
The wallpaper project is a biographical journey through these layers, a reflection of the artist's own sense of self-worth and identity. A walk in the discovery of the ego and its own destruction.
The wallpaper project, which was initiated in 2022 as an interdisciplinary performance, was inspired by the renovation of a house in Linz, Austria. What began as physical labor evolved into a research process centered around exploring the "layers" that define an artist, ultimately resulting in a 40-minute performance that reflects my personal journey involving art, work, and private life.In April 2022, my partner and I moved into an old apartment in Linz that required significant renovation. One room, particularly the bedroom dominated by a deteriorated yellow wallpaper, demanded special attention. As we embarked on the renovation process, uncovering layers of paint, other wallpapers, drawings, writings, and hair beneath the surface, I developed a strong connection with the space. Spending ample time observing and documenting every detail, I began to see patterns and textures not only in the walls but also in my own body.Simultaneously delving into master's studies and drawing inspiration from works by Bojana Kunst and Marina Abramovic, I envisioned transforming my renovation experiences into the concept for a final performance. As I delved deeper into research and creation, the room slowly started to reveal its history, with each layer of the walls uncovering different stories and evoking various reactions within us.Realizing the room's immense creative potential, I embarked on a journey of exploration, utilizing city archives, introspection, and conceptualization to shape my ideas. The room, along with its walls as physical boundaries, served as a metaphor in the wallpaper project for the societal rules and restrictions imposed on individuals, artists, and workers.With the support of talented friends and colleagues, I began gathering material and structuring the performance, which primarily consisted of documenting my personal journey in chapters (1-6) and compiling interviews and poems from fellow colleagues.
CHAPER 5- the beginning
It Is just another day. I put on my overalls and enter the room. Another day, another endless hour scrubbing, peeling, reshaping, peeling. Layer by layer, I strip away the unnecessary to be part of something new. Hours and hours, working in this room. I turn and turn, first one wall, then the other, above and below. It never seems to end. Sweep away the broken pieces, clean up, start again. I feel like I've been here forever: losing my balance, falling, getting back up, on my knees, on the edge. There is silence at last: a ray of sunshine illuminates us and gives hope. After all, everything is in the little things. A smile was all it took to have a reason to go on, finish and start again.
BASIC ELEMENTS:
Music* scrapping, sound rhythmically set, impro organised.
Dance* broken, pieces, scrapings, first layer of skin, peel, hanged, focused, organised.
Elements* dust, dirt, water, soap, spatula,
DESCRIPTION:
Dry representation of the making of the wallpaper- scraping-
STAGE:
-yellow wallpaper projection
-during the scene it scrapes revealing parts of the layers/ images/little videos maybe?
-A+R scrap the room/demonstration of how we worked
-idea of dust at the end (what is left of what happened is just dust and dirt)
Chapter 1-LUST
How do you fell when you fall in love?
We never forget the moment we feel in love: with a person, with a moment, with an idea. Everything seems idyllic, part of a fairytale, no questions are asked, the guts are what lead our judgement. Unaware of what lies ahead, we dive into the void without a parachute, chasing the image we have made up in our heads, without considering what we are up against.
In love with something I am not yet able to describe, to comprehend, I move lost at the mercy of my enchanter. Between soft and fluctuating movements, without glancing at the goal, I follow blindly. Despite not being able to recognize whoever is in front of me, I feel bewitched and without too many doubts or questions I move toward where I am being guided, until I lose track of time, place, space. I am happy but lost.
ELEMENTS:
Scrapes, the rest, the ashes, dust, leftover, garbage.
DESCRIPTION:
the sheet of fabric covers the essence
(the artist under)
The goal is to get out of this restriction, of this illusion that covers everything.
There is a struggle to fit in something you don’t belong/ conscious awakening from disillusionment
DANCE* soft,dreamy,delicate, (unreal) idyllic,the essence, the core, minimal, very thoughtful, symbolic movements
MUSIC* illusory,beautiful,like a fairy tale with a dark connotation, overemotional, with all elements of the naked wall: craks,wood,holes -minor key chord - major
STAGE* unfolding of the walls
Textile idea*(Magritte- the lovers) as an obstacle for truth, honesty
IT IS A MASK, a cover!
chapter 2 - me, myself and I
Who am I?
From where I come from?
Where do I have to go?
Lost. I am lost, perhaps broken. I scrape away what I don't need on the surface. I scratch a little more and a little more. deeper and deeper. The sounds and voices that have accompanied me so far become more and more present, evoking moments and people who no longer exist, who are lost in the memories of a life long gone. Yet everything is so close, so familiar: all around, it belongs to me. I am overwhelmed by routines that I do not want on me but make me who I am. I want to get rid of it, but I can't. Every element is part of me, makes me who I am. exhausted, I surrender to the idea that you cannot change the essence of things, only accept them for what they are.
ELEMENTS:
Material from archives/past/stereotypes/grotesque/ridicule
3.1 ruins- the splendor beauty is gone, it rests the memory
Red, old, prayer room, philosophy, blood from wound, isolation,
3.2 highway-road trip new beginnings,
Energetic, dots, sign, arrow, direction
3.3
Ananas, childhood, worrying for the safety, summer house, kid.
STAGE*dark, just light on upper body, focus on gestures
Overlapping of images/ videos/clips about me or Italy or things important
DESCRIPTION:
Concept of identity/ Childhood, home, culture, from where I come from, how did I get here, what has formed me?
Alessia aurora rizzi
dancer and creator
Alessia Aurora Rizzi is an Italian freelancer. She works as dancer, assistant, and choreographer.She begins her studies in Milan, her hometown, at the Scuola di Ballo del Teatro alla Scala. She expands her studies at West Finland College side by side with Mab to conclude her training in Reggio Emilia at Agora Coaching project. She moves to Germany where she workes and collaborated with many internationally renowned artists and theatres, to then move to Austria in 2017 to work for Tanz.Linz. In the past 2 years she choreographes and assists for major houses such as Bruckner Haus and Landestheater Linz. She boasts of having worked with international artists, to mention a few: Vladimir Vassiliev, Francesco Nappa, Henrik Kaalund, Ashley Lobo, Johann Kresnik, Johannes Wieland, Mei Hong Lin. Among the theatres in which he has had the privilege to perform: Teatro alla Scala, Festspielhaus Hellerau, National Taichung Theatre, Musiktheater Linz, Volkstheater Wien.
MAX VAN DER MEER-
Visual Artist