This is a series of three video performances carried out in public spaces in the city of Rotterdam. During a four-month stay, the artist researched the movement and routines of the city, taking an interest in its architecture and the music that is so present in its streets.
Marcela Moraga performed with a boombox she bought in Rotterdam and a selection of sounds she obtained from an open internet archive. Like many of her actions, the Radio Performances occurred spontaneously for the passersby who experienced them. The artist’s idea was to camouflage into the city’s routine and become part of it.
Like a Selk´ nam
Marcela Moraga visited Kralingse Bos park in Rotterdam. Sitting on the grass, she realized that underneath there was no soil, but concrete. The artist imagined that the vegetation and the lake were artificial constructions, then she wondered about the connection between humans and nature; between parks and citizens; between nature and indigenous worldview.
In the performance, the artist painted her body like a Selk’nam, recalling the Hein ceremony of this Patagonian people. In the ceremony, the women painted their bodies with earth to take on the role of the spirit of the moon, the sun, or the sky and once in their role, they frightened the men. In Like a Selk’nam, the artist attempted to be a spirit of the park while listening to recordings of birds and the jungle on her portable radio.
Hi8 video, color and sound. Loop 2‘ 9‘‘. Camera: Giancarlo Pazzanese. Editing: Marcela Moraga
In Domestic Productions, the artist recorded a series of dog barks on a CD, which she played back while walking through a city park carrying her boombox. Several people were walking their dogs in the park.
Hi8 video, color and sound. Loop 1‘ 26‘‘. Camera: Alexis Carreño. Editing: Marcela Moraga
In Rebel Buildings, the artist recorded a series of gunshot and machine gun sounds on a CD. Using the boombox she played these sounds on the Erasmus Bridge and outside the Shipping and Transport College building in Rotterdam. In this performance Marcela Moraga wears the clothing of a fictional terrorist.
Hi8 video, color and sound. Loop 2‘ 6‘‘. Camera: Giancarlo Pazzanese. Editing: Marcela Moraga