Between Empty Times – Empty Space - a summary

 

Between Empty Times – Empty Space

At the beginning of my Faber Andorra project, an empty, upside-down glass was marked. Now, a half-full, or rather, half-empty glass signifies the end of my project and my time in Andorra.

My project was dealing with the concepts of empty times – empty spaces and is based on the philosophical thoughts and ideas of Ma and Zen, which originate from the Far East.

Originally, it was planned as a solo project including only one Social Sculpture workshop. Due to my mental health issues, I perceive and experience the world differently. I therefore generally approach projects without expectations, as this would, in my case, limit my mind and prevent me from gaining new experiences and insights. This means that I often discover opportunities directly at the residency location itself that were not available or visible during the initial planning and concept development phase. These are normally circumstances and subjects that I wouldn't find in my hometown, for example.

The opportunities that arose shortly before the start of my stay allowed me to collaborate with three local artists simultaneously. Furthermore, instead of just one workshop on the topic of social sculpture, an additional land art workshop and an artist talk were also conducted.

With each artist, I worked on a different project:

Audiovisual (sound/video)project "Circadian Silence" in collaboration with scientist and visual art artist Nathalie Launay (Andorra).

Visualized poem (video poem)"El pes i el buit del temps" in collaboration with poet Fabiola Sofia Masegosa (Andorra).

The third project was a performance ”Space Between Empty and Full” created in collaboration with visual artist Emma Regada, which explored the concepts of empty/full, using water as the main medium.

The three different workshops included:

1x Social Sculpture Workshop for school children between 10-11

1x Land Art Workshop for 1st Grad primary school children (British College in Andorra)

1x Artist talk Topic "What is the relationship between illness and creation? How does artistic practice affect and condition having good health or not?" for students on the English course at the Lifelong Learning Centre. The talk included two short exercises from the Social Sculpture Workshop.

In addition to the collaborative projects with the three artists and the workshops, I regularly visited my favorite cafes in La Massana, either the Grupetta or the Granier. There, I not only continued working on my projects, but also observed the social and urban environment from the perspective of a lone wolf.

I took the time for walks and to visit museums and exhibitions, including the Comic Museum in La Massana, the Museu Casa Rull in Sispony (La Massana), and the Casa d'Areny-Plandolit in Ordino, to learn more about these two very different families who once lived in these houses, about their lifestyles and their status in their time and society. I also had the opportunity to visit the LandArt25 Biennial in Sant Julià.

I am very grateful to Faber Andorra for the residency opportunities and to Sandra Colell for her efficient support and assistance, which made the realization of important parts of the project possible. I will cherish this short stay. Not only because of what I accomplished, but also because of the impressive landscape, the culture, and the atmosphere of the towns and villages