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BIONICA! Artist Collective (Short Biography)
BIONICA! is a catalan artist collective founded by Zoe Balasch Arumí, - dancer and choreographer, and performer artist - , and Isabel Andrés Portí, - film director, writer and performer artist -, based in Barcelona and Menorca Balearic Island (ES), whose interests include Ecological art, and the meeting points between performing arts and visual arts. BIONICA!’s purpose is to build agency among their collaborative audiences, conceiving participatory actions that open different field perspectives, new narratives, and aesthetics in relation to present social, political and environmental crises, growing restoration and public awareness through innovative methodological strategies, that call up to an artistic but playful, poetic message.
BIONICA!’s language is fluent and moves away from any label because it opens a wide spectrum of creative formats such as dance, performance, video, sound, walks, creative writing or action art. BIONICA! is specially interested in site-specific proposals, whether indoors or outdoors, and with equal interest in rural and urban environments, across Europe and its diverse cultural backgrounds, regions and countries.
BIONICA! Artist Collective (Extended Biography)
BIONICA! Artist Collective is composed by Zoe Balasch Arumí; dancer and coreographer. She is a researcher on body language and dance forms. Zoe created solo, collaborative, and group performances. Her works has been presented internationaly in festivals, art galleries, universities and in unconventional exhibiting circuits around Europe; and Isabel Andrés Portí, film director, writer and performer artist. She is the director of 'Generacó Pegaso' her debut documentary film, and has worked in more than 40 international productions of various film genres, with various responsibilities in the departments of direction, screenplay and documentation. Both are the founders and active members based in the Barcelona area, and Menorca Balearic Island (ES), whose current interests include Ecological art, and the meeting points between performing arts and visual arts. Their working method evolves in stages, from a prior study and field research, following its put in practice and work in progress, a symbiotic synthesis result of their individual professional experienced backgrounds.
BIONICA! Artist Collective has conceived site-specific performances that focus on contemporary hot topics that address the present social, political and environmental crises, dealing with the common issue of ecological collapse context. Aiming to grow restoration, and public awareness throughout different methodological strategies, resulting in innovative artistic projects. Their language is fluent and moves away from any label, they work with all kinds of creative formats such as photography, video, sound, walking arts, performance, dance and choreography, creative writing and they involve the public at different levels. They serve themselves from affordable means on site, in order to carry out an easy and sustainable experience for each project. Therefore they are especially interested in site-specific proposals, whether indoors or outdoors, and with equal interest in rural and urban environments. Aiming to engage within diverse cultural local backgrounds, encouraging interactions between different age groups, and promoting gender balanced inclusive participation.
BIONICA! Artist Collective was born in 2017 with the conception of a first initial project “The Metal Affair” , a site-specific performance with video projection, premiered at Sites Embodied Cyprus Festival – 2017. Organized by Dance Gate Lefkosia & the Akamas Project of Pafos European Capital of Culture Pafos 2017, in collaboration with British Columbia University and EDN, European Dancehouse. The Metal Affair has been awarded by the Ramón Llull Institute of Catalan Culture, and supported by Dance Gate Lefkosia. A year after, in 2018, realized “The Quiet Riot Tour” project, conceived for the festival Urban Emptiness Nicosia. A Walk/performance format propsal which explored the interconnection between walking and new media in digital and physical spaces in Nicosia, Cyprus. This project was selected among other artists from all over the world, to investigate silence, intimacy, and emptiness in the contemporary urban fabric of the city through out collective experiences and documentation of diverse artistic practices with parallel and simultaneous actions in other cities. As Nicosia is a divided capital, the idea of crossing, borders and limits was almost inevitably an integral part of many projects. Investigations of “parallel cities within a city” were also carried out as guided walks, referencing the urban reality of marginalised communities and groups, in contrast to the high street experience. Walks/performances also strove to connect the experience of navigating virtual and actual spaces simultaneously. Ultimately, this presentation asks the question: “Can a playful encounter in public spaces carry political implications or make us experience a certain place anew? “. The project was sponsored by theCyprus Ministry of Education and Culture, the Flemish Ministry Of Culture, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Brussels, and the European Cultural Foundation.
Results of this two initial projects in collaboration with Dance Gate- Lefkosia Cyprus Cyprus - (EDN) European Dancehouse Network – Partner, appeared the idea for a third project “Enjoy Your Fences” still in continuous development is a reflection on the notion of “Fences” invisible physical bounderies but external imposed borders. Due to Cyprus’s geopolitical position as a European country on the furthest of South Eastern Europe, this project particularity engages to promote dance and culture at the crossroads of cultures and as a crossroad between three continents and helps to visibilize Nicosia, still remaining the only divided capital of Europe.
Likewise as in the challenging times of ecological crisis, environmental changes influence, transform and readjust the ecosystems. The collective artistic vision and their methodological strategies must assess under a continuous refresh, wandering, and benefit from being updated, revisited, or simply set aside. Collectively they will provide proven true methods for each locality and territories they work with. They are Inspired by the cultural diversity from those that welcome them, paying especial attention to the local speaking languages, to closely engage with the place and backgrounds of the practitioners, and develop ideas that learn and grow from their will.
BIONICA! Artist Collective invites to interrupt and reflect into the dominant and implicit conceptual frameworks of each community and sociocultural context their encountaring, but also aims to return back in by paying attention to what their needs are, what they talks are about and what they aspire to: not just to restore, but perhaps to explore and instigate other playful and reassuring expressive, and poetic artistic paths, spreading fruitful seeds for the future.
CV
BIONICA! Artist Collective (Selection)
SITE-SPECIFIC PERFORMANCES:
2018
Quiet Riot Tour Walk
Performance with 4G broadband mobile telephone network format. Conceived for the festival Urban Emptiness, Nicosia (Cyprus), December 2018.
Festival sponsored by the Cyprus Ministry of Education and Culture, the Flemish Ministry Of Culture, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Brussels, and the European Cultural Foundation.
2017
The Metal Affair
Dance-performance with video-projection on the ecological and social impact of illegal quarries in the Park Akamas National, Androlikou (Cyprus). Premiered at Sites Embodied Cyprus Festival, April 2017.
Festival and residence organized by Dance Gate Lefkosia & the Akamas Project of Pafos European Capital of Culture Pafos 2017, in collaboration with British Columbia University and (EDN) - European Dance House.
RESIDENCIES, GRANTS:
2017
The Metal Affair
Residence supported by Dance Gate Lefkosia, and awarded by the Ramón Llull Institute of Catalan Culture as part of the Catalan artists international mobility program.
PUBLICATIONS, WRITINGS:
2019
Eco Art Incubator Cyprus: Sites Embodied, Working Catalogue and Curriculum. By Nancy Holmes (Autor), andDenise Kenney (Autor). Edited by Lake Publishing, 2019.
Direct Link: Direct Link: https://www.amazon.es/ECO-ART-INCUBATOR-CYPRUS- Contemplations/dp/1987939018
Walking in the city: between silences and emptiness by Sophia Hadjipapa, European University , Cyprus and Geert Vermiert, Urban Emptiness Network. pg.247, 18 As per the performance description offered by the artists. Edited by ELIA , 2019.
Direct Link: https://www.academia.edu/42353297/Walking_in_the_City_Between_Silences_and_Emptiness
Zoe Balasch Arumí
Zoe Balasch Arumí
Zoe Balasch Arumí is a dance artist, performer, choreographer and researcher of body language and dance forms. She has been involved in creative work for national and international festivals, art galleries, contemporary creation centers and universities, showing and presenting in Spain, Catalonia, Cyprus, Slovakia, Thailand, Denmark, France, Portugal and in the city of Berlin. She has a degree in Psychology from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, with studies in dance therapy, and is certified as a teacher of Hatha yoga. She has extensive training in dance participating in different courses, seminars, mostly in Body Weather Laboratory. She has studied in Catalonia, Spain, Czech Republic, Germany and France. Zoe has trained with Andrés Corchero, Hisako Horikawa, Carme Torrent, Frank Van de Ven, Christine Quoiraud, Sherwood Chen, Constanza Brncic, among others. She also expanded her research and knowledge, learning Butoh dance with Minako Seki, Juschka Weigel and conducting residential stays with Masaki Iwana and Moeno Wakamatsu, at the Maison du Butoh Blanc in France, with Rhizome Lee at the Himalayan Butoh School, in India and with Anita Saj at the Nordic School in Butoh, Denmark. Zoe has received scholarships of support for creation awarded by the OSIC, Office of Support for Cultural Initiative of the Department of Culture of the Generalitat of Catalonia and as resident artist in Catalonia at the CACIS, Center for Contemporary Art and Sustainability, Nau Côclea, Center for Contemporary Creation and CeRCCa, Casamarlés Research and Creation Center. Balasch's creations include solo, collaborative and group performances. Her work navigates along a wide range of creative forms adopting different formats: dance-performance pieces, choreography and landscape and walkshops. She is especially interested in creating site-specific pieces, both indoors and outdoors, and in rural and urban environments.
Zoe Balasch combines dance creation and the research of new body languages from a symbiotic relationship of intertwined knowledge, which allows her to explore ways of approaching, denouncing and reflecting on different current issues that concern her: the intangible landscape, the sense of place, the ephemeral and everyday life. In her research of body language and dance forms, she is interested in Eastern philosophies and the way the body is conceived. Consequently, her body language is fluent, diverse and far from labels, evoking a continuing questioning of dance, the body and its environments of exhibition and creation.
Isabel Andrés Portí
Isabel Andrés Portí
Isabel is a filmmaker and screenwriter from Barcelona. Studied Art History at Universitat Autònoma and Film and TV Screenwriting at Fundació Taller de Guionistas, both in Barcelona. She made her professional steps in film in London, where she lived for a few years, as Production Assistant and Assistant Director, meanwhile training in Film Direction at Raindance Film School and in Film and Media Studies at Birbeck University and British Film Institute. After, in Cuba, she took part of the Advanced Screenwriting postgraduate workshop at the very unique EICTV of San Antonio de los Baños, and since then she has never stopped updating. She is native bilingual Catalan and Spanish and completely fluent in English and Italian, as she has also lived and worked in Rome for some years. Since 2000 she happily works in film direction, screenwriting and visual and content research departments in international and awarded productions, mainly documentaries and commercials, but also art projects. In 2013 she moved to Berlin, and from 2017 she is a founding member of the artists collective BIONICA!. She currently lives between Barcelona and Menorca Balearic Islands (ES) but works internationally. Her work stands out for: strong storytelling, powerful images, special found footage, social awareness, authorial approach, creative challenges and positive teamwork.
http://www.isabelandresporti.com/
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