January February 2011
Art & Culture Auroville
#3
CHATTERING WITH JI CHENG AND LE NOTRE Sunday morning, it’s not raining anymore; let’s go for an utopist walk which takes us through the garden of Vaux-le-Vicomte in France as well as through the Yihe Yuan, the Summer Palace’s garden in Beijing, China. Two masters, Ji Cheng (1582-1642) and André Le Nôtre (1613-1700) are discussing gardening, landscaping and what to do after the rainy season in front of Diane’s flower bed. To be part of it, what a chance! I’ll be able to listen to them and confirm one of my intuitions: that there is no pure and simple opposition between their two approaches of the Art of the Garden… Of course, when we discover Vaux-le-Vicomte (created in 1654) in the countryside around Paris, it’s obvious that it’s said to be done ‘à la française’. It is from the French gardens’ school! There are green embroideries near the castle, quiet sheets of water which look like mirrors, and a long perspective which gives the observer the pleasant sensation of being part of the surrounding landscape. With a few more curious steps, we are suddenly surprised to see the strip of light of the Grand Canal, which until that moment has been hidden by a shady valley.
In the Garden of Protected Harmony, the Chinese Yihe Yan (created in 1750), the lake Kunming is the first feature giving a strong impression of the landscaped Chinese garden. It does that through a succession of bridges which all echo differently to the surrounding topography, initiating a dialogue with the green background. Near the residences, in a delicate balance between contrasting yin and yang, we can walk into several courtyards, such as the hall of the Happiness, or of the Jade waves, names which evoke poetry and painting, both intimately connected with the art of the garden in Chinese tradition. The Large Scene and the Long Corridor offer us some spectacular viewing points to the open neighborhood. We experience here the literal translation of the word ‘shanshui’: mountainwater, characteristic to Chinese landscape paintings. So, beyond the obvious differences, highlighted by the forms of pagodas and the ‘folies’, the two landscapers both endeavoured to create some sort of delicate intimacy near the palace by placing frames and sceneries as in a natural theatre, and by playing with existing natural elements in order to create depth or
perspective, or by hiding some major piece of art for the joy of discovery. Both used all sorts of technical resources in order to master the elements essential in the landscape, employing any wizardry in order to perfume the thus created space with the fragrance of poetry. When Ji Cheng mentions to his colleague his treaty about Chinese garden, the ‘Yuanye’ (1633), in which he postulates that a garden is a representation and requires a visit like to an art exhibition, Le Nôtre in turn opens the ‘Art de la promenade’ where Louis XIV describes an ideal walk around Versailles Garden. Both these approaches carry an incredibly wide variety and arsenal of cultural forms and attributes at the disposal of each gardener, from Extreme-Orient to Occident, for their creations.
The garden is a laboratory to create a piece of world where culture and nature grow together for our own contemplation.
“All the subtleties are inherent in the word: I see”, wrote garden master Chen Chongzhou… Marie.
CHRONOTYPE © Whereas photography’s common characteristic is to fix on film an instant of space-time continuum, most often reproducing on the two-dimensional surface of the final support an image that one thinks to be close to reality and that deeply stimulates those unconscious processes of reconstruction by similitude, constituting the base itself of human visual perception, - Chronotypes© fixes on the film a duration of sizeable importance. The duration is appreciable given a handful of seconds along with a space that is trapped within the two dimensions, through which the subject loses that perspective reference that is usually implicit in what is intended for photography. The reduction of a tri-dimensional subject on a plane that crosses it in a perceivable time, though remaining apparently still, is, I believe, the most adherent representation of that unknowable reality of which we are an inseparable part. Although it may seem surprising, the result maintains a compliance with reality outside of any subsequent interpretative intervention. Giorgio.
GRANDMOTHER SINGS November and December 2010 saw Audrey, artist in residence and Aurovilian, in several exhibitions called ‘Grandmother Sings’ at the Sathuran Gallery and Ashram Gallery in Puducherry and at the Pavilion of Tibetan Culture in Auroville. Each venue had a different feel to it. The Sathuran Gallery, near the big market on Rangapillai Street, was a surprise with its elegant, traditional Tamil interior. The Ashram Gallery with its expansive, white painted hallways was successful in bringing Audrey’s work forward with little distraction in its traditional white cube format. The work itself is fully ensconced in Western contemporary art concerns of the 20th century, mixed with thoughts and poetry of evolution, a central feature here in Auroville. What does it look like when colors, forms, waves, textures, calligraphy overlap and converge into a thought abstraction? Audrey used aerial photography as a starting point and applied influences from exploration of biomorphic resonance according to Rupert Sheldrake. In 36 black and white ink drawings, “Gaia” morphs from rhythms, pulsations, waves, vibrations into different forms: her ruminations on how this process of evolution actually begins. The drawings are also arranged into a mandala of evolutionary forms that interrupt each other on the picture plane. The “Mind” imagines itself across several canvasses, Audrey’s own conception of calligraphy. These drawings are reproduced in larger format on individual canvasses.
We catch glimpses of the vast universe and galaxies of shadowy constellations, star forms/bursts and possibly Grandmother’s song as calligraphy blending into the forms. In a painting entitled “Satprem” we see a cloud-like aquamarine translucent mist making its descent, energy of Satprem’s mind drifting unresolved onto the canvas-ground of flat, muted forms. All the canvasses bring elements of “Congruent Color” theories into play. Her sense of color is expressed by the vibrant colors of bougainvillea flowers as reflected in a swimming pool, or impressionist color dots of light depicting a bird about ready to take flight. And there is the sensuous use of color in the painting “Congenial” that uses the contrast of violet and yellow and every tone in between. Or “Whispered Form”, a painting of high color values of golden-yellow brought to the verge of white, creating a veil that is almost not there.
THE PAINTINGS OF AUDREY WALLACE TAYLOR I left each exhibition with a delighted sense of Audrey’s life-time experiences, almost journal-like, explorations in form and color, dedicated to Gaia in her multitude of forms, a glimpse of time outside time and the creative imagination. Audrey is facilitating at the Creativity Atelier - a very good opportunity to explore your own sense of self expression and become inspired by the creative process. It’s a great way to go inside yourself, away from ever-present distractions, and focus on inner space - highly recommended! Miki.
After showing in two venues in Puducherry, ‘Grandmother Sings’ was on view at the Tibetan pavilion, from November 27 to December 14 2010, containing paintings by Audrey Wallace Tailor between 2006 to 2010. A title such as grandmother sings normally would make one expect a certain narrative element in the work exhibited under it, but Audrey Wallace Tailor’s paintings are abstract, in the broad American tradition of modern abstract painting. They are unemotional visuals. Their creator does not tell stories through them, but inquires into thoughts regarding morphology. They are visual records, probably of morphic fields, which Audrey got interested in after she attended one of Rupert Sheldrake’s workshop on the topic. What are morphic fields? The theory of morphic fields conjectures that all living beings have a field associated with them which defines their entire biology. Morphic fields provide a force that guides the development of an organism as it grows, making it take on a form similar to other species. DNA is not the source of structure itself, but rather a “receiver” that translates instructions in the field into physical form. It is a term associated with parapsychology and things like that. Rupert Sheldrake is an English plant
physiologist, known for having proposed an unorthodox account of morphogenesis and for his research in parapsychology. His books and papers stem from his theory of morphic resonance, and cover topics such as animal and plant development and behaviour, memory, telepathy and cognition in general. His publications include A New Science of Life (1981), Seven Experiments That Could Change the World (1995), Dogs That Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home (1999), and The Sense of Being Stared At (2003). Audrey’s work is visually simple: flat colour is applied, sometimes in thin layers and at other times painted thickly over. A meticulous ‘writing’ covers certain areas in some, just as in others there are large flat uninterrupted colour fields. Audrey calls the writing calligraphy. The term calligraphy means beautiful penmanship, but in Audrey’s work, although the elements are written down with brush, they belong to no familiar language. In some paintings they resemble hieroglyphs, but not Egyptian, but something more quintessential to writing. Perhaps the idea is to strip the script of all its accepted ‘meanings’ and leave the bare form in its objective pictorial essence. In one particular painting called cloud shadow she ‘wrote’ things, and later, when looking at what she had done, she realised that each individual character in the writing resembled a walking figure. Some time back Audrey made a small black and white drawing in pen & ink. She then isolated one small square and enlarged it. From 36 such enlargements of parts from that same drawing a composite work emerged called ‘Convergence mandala’. For a person who has worked in the art field since the early sixties, Audrey is a low profile artist. She studied painting at the Art Institute in San Francisco. She has had many group shows and solos, and has juried shows “in the Bay area ever since”. She has helped found a cooperative gallery in Alameda, CA; and worked on an art installation honouring women, now permanently in the Brooklyn museum. She has curated shows; worked through art to raise the consciousness of communities with regard to conversion of military bases into peaceful use, and taught drawing and painting in her studio. In Auroville she has opened an atelier in the community Creativity in order to facilitate regular workshops reintroducing people to their own self expression, and to paint and engage in community art projects. Her work is in many private collections in India, Europe and the USA. Charu.
consider is that which ascribes my work as abstract but I feel limited even by the materials and I’m still searching for a voice. S: ARE YOU FIRST AN ARTIST AND THEN AN AUROVILIAN? H. That is like what came first - the chicken or the egg? I think Auroville has chosen me. Auroville is the biggest love of my life.
Hufreesh’s pieces are the result of a layering of techniques and experiences, which broadly sway from the colour- intense abstract to the post-figurative psychic detail. The viewer is challenged to enter a world filled with poetic nuances of colour, which can be read on various levels. Each work stands as a testament to Hufreesh’s continuous search for a balanced end point - that equilibrium which she hopes to satisfy and declare as an attitude. A style. Some of the works are enriched by very personalized use of the frame - the frame as an integral part of the art-object and not only a decorative support. The frames give relative spatial movement and dynamics to the canvas, adding a visual strength, which is interesting and brave. A possible reference to Frank Stella, albeit much reduced in size and, as such, in impact.
S: DO YOU FIND THE NEEDED STIMULUS AND ENVIRONMENT IN AUROVILLE? H: No, in comparison to large cities, we are seriously lacking in an environment conducive to art. We are missing a process of exchange with the outside. We are also lacking adequate show spaces or galleries. I have tried over the years to propose a dialogue around this issue with no luck. The people who run the show seem to resist the need for the visual arts and I sense resentment towards my chosen way of life. We seem to find acceptance for the various crafts and other objects that are sold but we, as a community, have not had the interest to platform our visual art in a serious and productive commercial way. Auroville artists are continuously struggling and left alone in this difficult journey.
ously and financed in a coherent way. We should be respected as being valuable for our community. S. IS YOUR ART SPIRITUAL? H. I don’t label it as spiritual that is up to the viewer. The conversation with Hufreesh continued but the space allotted me on this page is limited. So, I suggest you take the time to visit www.hufreesh.com. Should you be an artist or an interested participant in bringing good art to our community, kindly contact me and voice your ideas! cortes@sebastiancortes.com
S. AN ATTEMPT WAS MADE, EARLY THIS YEAR, TO CREATE A GALLERY SPACE IN THE VISITOR’S CENTRE, NEXT TO THE OTHER PLACES OF The show is filled with many new startCOMMERCE FOR AUROVILLE PRODing points, which Hufreesh admits result UCTS. BUT THOSE CURRENTLY IN from stimuli absorbed during her recent visit to the Florence biennale and assorted CHARGE INDICATED A RESTRICTION THAT THE GALLERY SHOULD workshops, where she felt emboldened SHOW ONLY AUROVILLE ARTISTS. to reach out across new borders. The works have been assembled with elegance CAN A CITY CONCEIVE OF ONLY SHOWING THE ART PRODUCED INand a clear visual strategy, which helps SIDE - IT ALL SOUNDS VERY PAROthe viewer to consider the body of work CHIAL AND LIMITING? as unified. The chromatic energy is also achieved with a true sense of exploration H. Yes, I agree but maybe it will have that is bold and interesting. to be a two phase process or better yet, we should be granted an area which is The soothing atmosphere of Pitanga not under any jurisdiction and can be seems to attract many Auroville artists. motivated by the idea of only good art. The well organized display area, though lacking the proper lighting and wall space We must have a prime location where the public can reach. And we should be of a “real” gallery, lends itself easily to moderate size works and allows for an in- considered as important or even more important than all the commercial formal viewing experience, which is certainly pleasing to the viewer. It was in this products currently promoted. Maybe enveloping atmosphere that Hufreesh and we should be given a location close to the current visitors centre but indepenI explored not only the elements of her dent. We artists must come together and show, hinted at above, but also explored some issues relative to the concepts of art demand our space. We should have more public art, which should be taken seri- inside and outside Auroville: SEBASTIAN: TELL ME ABOUT YOUR ARTISTIC “PROCESS”. Hufreesh: “I explore different techniques and allow them to guide me in an unconscious way…. colour and form also unfold in a similar way - without much premeditation. Even the figures that appear are all part of a very unconditioned effort - elements just fall into place…. this is what I enjoy about my work. I avoid any mind intervention. S: DO YOU CONTEXTUALIZE YOUR WORK TO ANY GENRE OR STYLE? H: No, I take a technique as far as I can with the element of chance and not belonging to any label. The only container I
A CHAT WITH HUFREESH AT HER RECENT SHOW IN PITANGA
A PIECE OF ART
Generally speaking, a piece of art is an interpretation of reality or a certain facet of reality in terms of beauty. We may broaden its scope to include those who make art without any need for beauty by calling something a piece of art as expression of a significant rhythm in things. Some others may not qualify... The definition above must not be applied strictly today because a piece of art nowadays can mean a wide variety of things. It can be a concept, an idea, an act or other phenomenon, both bizarre and non-bizarre. Here we talk about a ‘Piece of Art’, a travelling exhibition on view at the Gallery Square Circle, Bharat Nivas, from 11 - 21 December 2010. There is a pun in the word ‘piece’ because in this case a piece of wood was made available to any artist from anywhere who wanted to participate in the project. More information on this is available on the following address: www.ksw-ev.de or, if you seek answers to questions which may arise after seeing the show, you may write to Werner Gabriel public_design_office@yahoo.com . The proceeds are for the benefit of a workshop for differently abled people.
The said piece of wood may strike you more as an Arp cut-out than Art. Jean Arp (18861966) was a German-born French sculptor, painter, collage-maker, print-maker and poet. He was a founding member of the Dada movement in Zurich in 1916. He could be said to have legitimised ‘chance’ or serendipity in Art. What he is famous for is that he cut cardboard shapes randomly and tossed them in the air. When and where they fell down, then and there Art was born! But those were different times, World War I was on, and revolt was in the air. This is not about Arp though, but about a ‘Piece of Art’, the exhibition. The leaflet distributed at the gallery suggests that art in this show is not a revolt. Its goal is to create art without borders, to connect people from different social, ethnic and cultural backgrounds by dealing with the given form in their own specific way. On view is how hundred and some artists from 73 different nations have dealt with the little piece of wood. Some have painted it intricately, while some have simply dunk it in either paint or liquid wax; others treated it like an animal or
a bird and yet others framed them in squares. A big red and ochre doll-like form in the main central circular space of the gallery dominated the other expressions on show. Overall, the display is a potpourri of manners and styles and approaches and attitudes of artists from various backgrounds. As a concept, perhaps it works to bring people together, and it gives the participants some value for their money (aspiring participants can purchase a Piece of Art-box for 33€ from the address at the bottom of this article). If it works, it could spread like wild-fire. But the object will have to be well defined. ‘Art without boundaries’ is a concept quite befitting of our times, and of Auroville particularly: anything that conjoins diverse elements must hold a great deal of meaning. That much for the concept which is, all said and done, only a tool. It is the product which this tool will produce that will have to be controlled as far as its quality is concerned. Modern and post-modern era has unleashed unimaginable forces of experimentation which have thrown a great deal of dust in the air. In time that dust will settle and the air will
clear, and in that clean atmosphere we will see art that is well founded, clean and of enduring value. The address for purchasing the ‘Piece of Art’ box: Karl-Schubert-workshop for disabled people, Project Piece of Art, Kurze str. 31, 70794 Filderstadt-Bonlanden, Germany. Charu.
ART (IS) THERAPY Before words came into the picture, images were externalized expressions used to communicate and heal. Throughout history, the understanding and complexity of visual language has in many ways paralleled human evolution. Today, art therapy is an intentional form of reflection which allows a deeper awareness of the self to emerge. The American Art Therapy Association (AATA) defines art therapy as a mental health profession which uses the creative process of making art to improve or enhance the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of individuals of all ages. In the 1940s in the United States, psychiatrists discovered patients with mental illness who intuitively created art in order to cope with their everyday realities, thus beginning the “outsider art” movement. Concurrently, educators began to find visible correlation between child development and creation of art. Extensive research and development followed and today the field is gaining recognition, flourishing widely in hospitals, schools, shelters, prisons, and nursing homes. Studies have proven that Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is effectively treated with art therapy, most recently with
veterans of war and in disaster relief (including Hurricane Katrina, September 11th in New York, the tsunami across south-east Asia, and the Haitian earthquake). Art therapy assists those with autism, disabilities, addictions, terminal illness, the elderly (especially those with Alzheimer’s and dementia), and there are fascinating recent cases that bridge neuroscience and highlight the beneficial effects of the creative process on the brain. Art therapy is used with both individuals and groups, and provides a safe space to explore identity, self-esteem, communication, insight, creativity/spontaneity, and relaxation. It offers an alternative or complement to verbal therapy by more directly channeling the unconscious, as many of us struggle to use words and verbally explain our difficulties, traumas, and emotions. Some may argue that art itself is inherently therapeutic, and many experience dance, music, and drama in similar ways. Auroville is a wonderfully receptive location for sharing this field while I am volunteering here for six months, particularly in finding ways to connect consciousness and creativity. I am visiting from New York, where I received my graduate degree in Art Therapy from the
School of Visual Arts. My experience is primarily with children and women with HIV/AIDS. In 2009, I independently surveyed over 80 locations in India and Nepal, including schools, orphanages, NGOs, etc. where I could use these skills to benefit the local communities, and returned here to do more immersive work. Ultimately, I hope to open a center, most likely in Gujarat (source of my ethnic roots). If you are interested in learning more, and perhaps even in collaborating with this vision and effort, please visit my website at www.sankalpajourneys.com. For anyone with contacts/suggestions/questions or interest in private art therapy sessions until May 2011, please contact me at krupa.jhaveri@gmail.com or 9655845372. Love and light along your journeys! Krupa Jhaveri.
EDITO
Some were surprised to see we’re talking about gardens in our MAgzAV. Well, we are evidently ready to fight for a garden, even for a bench, so definitely gardens are part of our culture! Same goes for birds: it’s thanks to our forests and marvelous gardens that we have such incredible migration of birds here. Can we not argue, then, that birds are part of our culture? Well, Our Culture..!? Don’t we have an Aurovilian Culture? If the answer is ‘Yes’, then what is it? And if the answer is ‘No’, why? Which are the elements that define a culture and, in particular, an Aurovilian Culture? In no. 0 of the magazine you read that “Economy is Culture”, because what and how we produce and consume define an aspect of culture. So we at MAgzAV will go on to explore in all these various directions in order to try and answer precisely such questions. If you have something to say on this, we will be very happy to publish your opinion. Ha! Don’t worry about your ‘improper’ English! We will go through your texts, possibly suggest some changes and publish them only after your approval. It has to be your text. Bye-bye. Marco.
Like many in Auroville, we work with love, talent, determination and little else. Support MAgzAV by making a recurring contribution to our account #251 282.
UTOPIA IN FOUR MOVEMENTS Let me just briefly describe the chain of thoughts and clicks that made me come across an interesting film project. It started with a discussion on AVnet entitled “Do we owe the internet to the Pentagon or to the Commies” that drew my attention, posted by someone having the same name as me. Click. One comment named Tim Bernes-Lee as the founder of the internet, followed by another comment pointing out Vint Cerf ’s vital importance when it comes to names regarding whom to thank for the net as we know it. Vint Cerf? Yes, I remember that name. A wikipedia link was given. Click. Ah, ya, hm. It was then that I realized that I got to know Dave Cerf, his son, when doing an internship in San Francisco 10 years ago. After this I repeatedly tuned in to the Shirley&Spinoza internet radio that Dave once started. The description of its program: Broken, bouncing mixed-up
radio waves from your planet. Totally after my fancy. So, I googled Dave to see what he’s up to nowadays. Click. And I found this……… Dave Cerf is the musical director for a ‘live’ documentary directed by Sam Greene called Utopia in Four Movements. This very new concept of a ‘live’ documentary is introduced by Greene:
“The world is facing so many huge problems and challenges today, that ‘Utopia’ — as a way to illuminate possibilities, stir hope and the imagination — seems more important than ever.” Utopia is for this project both a subject and a creative aspiration. This “live documentary” form — I narrate the film in person and use Keynote to cue images while Dave Cerf mixes a soundtrack on his laptop — started out as just a way to put all the material together and screen it for people, sort of a live rough-cut. But over time, I’ve become quite fond of this as an approach. The ‘live-ness’ seems especially fitting. At its heart, Utopia is almost always about collectivity, about transcending the boundaries of our individual lives to connect with something larger. In this era, when there are so many forces pushing us into private and mediated experiences, the simple act of getting together with other people to talk, catch up, drink, and have a collective experience is a small utopian gesture. This kind of live event is also a response to the crisis facing cinema today. Most of my students rarely consider going to see a film in a theater. They can see a film more cheaply at home as a DVD or for free on YouTube. It seems as if filmmakers either have to embrace the notion of people watching their work furtively, in stolen moments, on laptops and iPods, or create something that cannot be reduced to a digital file. I love computers and the Internet, but seeing a movie in a theater with other people has an aura of immeasurable power and plenitude nothing can replace. Something of that collective experience that has been a utopian aspiration has also been a cinematic experience this last century or so, and this event is an attempt to approach both — to describe utopia and to create a kind of conversation of ideas with the audience. I thank people for coming to the theater. Without an audience it wouldn’t be live.” To know more, visit http:// utopiainfourmovements.comWould be great to get these guys invited to Auroville for the next Auroville Film Festival 2011, no? Christoph.
So booms this fragile looking person in the midst of us; the few Aurovilians sitting in a semi circular space are made intimate by her story. I keep admiring her verbal intellectual skills of threading the story of her being Third in Line and yet, at the same time, being, all the way through this adventure, the First!! The first to tell, the first to change, the first to understand...
BHARATI SHIVAJI performing Seeta Parinamam
PICHET KLUNCHUN (Thailand) performing I am a Demon
PAULA RICHMAN (United States) Are Ten Heads Too Much? Many Representations of Ravana
5 p.m. Mani Ratnam’s Raavanan with A.R.VENKATACHALAPATHY leading the discussion 9 p.m. Screening of G. Aravindan’s Kanchana Seetha
GULAM SHEIKH Visualizing Ramayana
RAJASTHANI SINGERS—Manganiars and Meghwals singing Rama bhajans
ROMILA THAPAR The View of the Variants in Re-telling the Story of Rama SAL MURGIYANTO (Indonesia) Ramayana and I: A Javanese dancer in Search of Self ’ I WAYAN DIBIA (Indonesia) Taksu in Balinese Performing Arts: An Examination of Wayang Wong and Wayang Kulit Ramayana ASHISH NANDY Heroic and Unheroic Heroes EDDIN KHOO (Malaysia) Dynamics of Wayang Kelantan
MAYA KRISHNA RAO performing Ravanama
ANMOL VELLANI Cultural Performance, Institutions, Industries and the Ecological Limit PARITTA KOANANTAKOOL (Thailand) Reflections on the notions of light and darkness in shadow play traditions in Thailand PORNRAT DAMRHUNG (Thailand) Reviving our Arts, Critiquing our Society, and Empowering our Lives: Aspects of the “Ramakien” in Thailand today
C.S.LAKSHMI When Grandmother’s Stories Become Epic Texts: Experiences of Listening to Ramayana and Studying Ramayana
KATTAIKKUTTU SANGAM in a new production of RamaRavana
HANNE DE BRUIN Dramaturgical possibilities of Ramayana: The Practice of Kattaikkuttu Sangam
A CONTEMPORARY MUSIC CONCERT
THE TRIO OTO3
Then she finally does dance like on a tight rope with feet that have been powdered demonstratively; feeling her balance and trying to embrace all that she was and is and maybe wishes to become! Stopping at moments to listen to her own breathing. ‘She is talented’.., I hear a whisper through the few of us glued to this mix of polished intelligence and fragile, even raw beauty! I love physical intellectual language and so does she, this Magda from America. And she is good at what she wants to tell us even if the content does not please all of us! In the end, it is her story whether you like it or not!
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Female integrity is at stake and a few of the audience members stand up to leave discreetly. A few movements of affection and self-healing qualities give breath and hope. Then her voice thunders, a proclamation; either be the artist or get over it and re-invent yourself!
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A hefty lament, dispute, shocking experience of alcohol abuse and neglect is unraveled with great verbal skill. To expose the unhealthy / unfair relationship between three women, grandmother/ mother and herself being THIRD IN LINE!
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Suddenly she is there and seems to grow; some magic is happening; some un-announced thread of words appears. The language is American; the scenario is American yet she seems to fit another costume… yes even another language...
MUGIYONO KASIDO (Solo, Indonesia) in new production of Shinta’s Memory
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Small, fragile, dark hair and eyes that search carefully the space, she enters the round space that is embraced by only a handful of Aurovilians.
PANDIT CHANNULAL MISHRA A vocal recital of Tulsidas
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A MODERN THEATER DANCE PERFORMANCE IN VERITE. DANCER CHOREGRAPHER AND WRITER MAGDA, A YOUNG AMERICAN WOMAN.
PERFORMANCES 7.00 PM TO 8.30 PM
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February 16-23, 2011
ADISHAKTI RAMAYANA FESTIVAL
THIRD IN LINE
LECTURES 10.00 AM TO 1.00 PM
After the successful concert at Pitanga, the musicians took some time to share with us their thoughts over breakfast. Early morning didn’t break the light spirit of the night before, and Maarten told us that the name OTO comes from otology - science for the ear. Research in music expression lead Maarten and Robbert to India, where they met Holger, and one thing leading to another, a few weeks back they assembled the trio OTO3. To all three, music is life, and because they’re sincere in their journeys they spend most of their time for it. As Maarten said, music has to be a part of you that can be expressed and he is very honest in his compositions. He sets out some musical parameters and boundaries for the three of them, works with a few good ideas, and the rest is music. Maarten Visser - saxophones Robbert van Hulzen – drums Holger Jetter - bass violin Taken from Auroville Radio.
The OTO3 Trio presented a concert of contemporary music written by one of the performers in collaboration with the two other performers. Fortunately, it was recorded by Auroville Radio and can be downloaded. Thus, the actual performance can be heard as a foundation to this review. There is also a photograph of the performers in action. http://www.aurovilleradio.org/arts-a-culture/music The performance took place on Wednesday, January 12th at Pitanga Hall. The three instrumentalists comprising the group: Maarten Visser played soprano, tenor and bass saxophone; our Holger Jetter played his familiar electric bass violin; and Robbert van Hulzen played on a full set of drums and cymbals of various sizes. Even before the concert formally began, the group introduced itself by playing softly with a rattle, soprano sax and the violin as the audience came in to the darkened hall to take their seats. There was a sizeable audience showing the expectation many have for “contemporary” music. In fact, although 20% of the audience did leave after the third piece, the remaining listeners applauded appreciatively after each session, and finally called for an encore at the end of the programme.Each of the 7 pieces plus the encore were introduced with humour by Maarten, the saxophonist. Basically, the compositions were minimalist, often monotonic. That is, there was little melody as such. Uniquely, the percussionist played as an instrument in the ensemble rather than as the traditional rhythmic support. On the other hand, within some of the compositions, each member played what seemed to be unrelated sounds. Yet, throughout, one felt intelligent and meaningful music had been composed and was now being performed with great virtuosity. The 4th and 7th pieces were exceptions in that there were simple, sometime cute melodies and the violin would even play in the baroque style. One could beat rhythmically. The audience’s reaction was to give most enthusiastic applause. One could only imagine that we still most appreciate conventional melodic, rhythmic music, even while appreciating and realizing the importance of new music. Yet, the music that was clearly part of the performers became the same for us, the absorbed listeners. These words have no meaning unless you can also attend this concert through Auroville Radio’s recording. Don.
GOD Arangetram expenses can sometimes equal that of a marriage, but supporters believe it is a potent way to maintain Tamil culture, and point to the increasing popularity of performances in the Chennai cultural season, for which the NRIs travel from around the world. Soundarya is keeping her eyes squarely on the path, agreeing with her teacher that dance is her way of expressing a prayer to the god. “I will keep on studying dance and performing and transmitting,” says Soundarya. ”I want to communicate with people so they understand about the dance.” Lesley.
A PRAYER TO
Photo by Olivier. final battle, she met Lord Shiva. When she saw him, she started to become more feminine and felt shy, and then they got married.” In ancient times Bharat Natyam was performed in temples, and many of the ancient sculptures in Hindu temples are based on the dance postures. But Shanti laments that Bharat Natyam is no longer esteemed. “Now you have these performances anywhere, at hotels and get-togethers, where people are eating and drinking, while a dancer is performing religious themes. It’s become more an entertainment in today’s world and it’s lost its place.”
Excuse-nous Olivier...
Auroville recently witnessed an Arangetram – the debut major performance from a Bharat Natyam classical dance student. After four years of preparation, 13-yearold Soundarya from Djaima community recently performed her three-hour Arangetram to a packed Bharat Nivas auditorium. Accompanied by musicians, she executed eight demanding ‘scenes’ on an elegantly decorated stage, striking her many well-wishers with her evocative story-telling through dance. Arangetram is a debut or graduation performance from the Margam, the path of the traditional dance format. In Tamil it means ‘climbing or entering the stage’. Arangetram reflects the different stages of the dancer’s consciousness, where both the guru’s knowledge and the student’s talent are judged by the public. It includes purely technical pieces intended to display the beauty of movements, and expressive themes where story segments are relayed. Soundarya, who attends Transition school, was unfazed about the commitment that the preparation required. “After all this learning, I should have the stamina to do such a long performance, knowing how to control the tiredness,” she says. “It was hard work… This is the beginning of my future, my first performance on stage. I’m very excited and happy.” Soundarya studies under Shanti, of Rasika dance school in Pondicherry, who explains that the long performance shows the mastery of the student over dance. “She’ll never again be doing such a performance in her whole life. Here onwards, she’ll be doing a performance of about an hour, or just developing on theme of the mythology…” Bharat Natyam comes from the same source as other classical dance forms in India – the ancient texts of the Natya Shashtras. Shanti says of the different forms of dance: “It all grew from the same base, and changed according to who did it and the sensibilities of different places.” Soundarya explains that the stories are from the puranas and concern gods and goddesses. “One story is about goddess Meenakshi,” she says. “She was masculine and she fought in wars. Then in one
MORADOKMAI IN AUROVILLE
So now another December has rolled around, past and gone and with it the delight of seeing my old friends again: the Moradokmai Theatre Troupe from Thailand. They were here to entertain us with a new show called “The Trial of Wantong”, a modern take on an old Thai legend about a woman who can’t decide who she loves and the terrible consequences for her. Great music supplied by Kru-Chang and Ar playing flute, guitar and “ranad” (traditional Thai xylophone. The theatre group is a mix of older, savvier actors and newer, younger ones: students at the Moradokmai Home School who have arrived in India for the first time to spend 6 days in Auroville before heading home to their performing arts community.
There is no untold story, but the unskilled storyteller.
Back home, the group is not just a theatre company, but also a performing arts high school, catering to students 14-19 years old. They learn music (both Thai and Western instruments), theatre and dance (both Thai dance as well as some Western models). The group’s Auroville visit led them to New Creation’s Aikiyam school and Future School. Then, on December 8th they performed at SAWCHU in front of an audience of about 60 people. One afternoon saw them with Grace at Bharat Nivas in a great modern dance workshop, and then a Sunday morning with the Mohanam young people. Balu had invited us to see the work of Mohanam Cultural Center and exchange some ideas about the Thai theatre festival. Inspired by the ardour for creation and the belief in the educational value of theatre of its founding director, Mr. Chang Janaprakal “Kru-Chang” Chandruang, the group can boast of having been around the world a few times now, playing at venues and festivals from France to Brazil, making friends and opening the eyes, minds and hearts of its Thai students and teachers. Ms. Pobchan Leelasartsuntorn, who is Mr. Chang’s partner, mother of their 10 year old son Nai Tai and a playwright and producer, accompanied the group on their visit this year. She was happy to be back in Auroville, which she first visited as a participant in a sustainable development workshop about 5 years ago. Moradokmai Theatre Troupe: a Community for Dramatic Arts and Development, Patumthani Thailand - As you learn from their website, Moradokmai is situated in the land of 10 rais, surrounded by paddy fields in Patumtani Province, 40 km. from central Bangkok, Thailand. They describe themselves as a group of dramatists who live together in a com-
munity in order to make an eco-better world through drama under 6 philosophies: 1. To meet together in harmony, disperse in harmony, and do the practices and duties of the order in harmony. 2. To practice it over and over again until it sustains, for better listening, thinking, speaking, reading, writing, acting and directing. 3. To live self-sufficiently and to be able to give back to nature and to others. 4. To concentrate on process more than product for true wisdom. 5. There is no untold story, but the unskilled storyteller. 6. You are what you eat, you are what you read, you are what you teach. As an Aurovilian, I can certainly be sympathetic to these principles and enjoy working with the highly motivated young people who have performed two plays in two years: “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller and “Our Town” by Thornton Wilder in Thai language, under my direction. This year, I am bringing my own script, adapted from the story of Peter Pan, set in the present, and full of music, so another adventure awaits us at Moradokmai. I am also very happy that I will have some company this year: I put a small announcement in the news about my travel plans, and quite a few people responded. With some help from their friends, the Mohanam Sound Crew, who entertained us at the Visitors’ Centre on New Year’s Eve, is trying to raise enough money to fly to Thailand and participate in the YAMCHAO International Theatre Festival, Jan. 20-30th, 2011. Produced by Moradokmai, with some help from sponsors, hope our boys can make it! (see www. mohanam.org). Then there’s Bhuvana and Rajaram from the PTDC and Chandra from Samriddhi, with Swar and possibly Peter Holl coming towards the end of March. So we will have a real collaboration between Moradokmai and Auroville this year! Sawadi Ka everyone!!! Jill.
A.V. Renaissance Cappella & Schola Gregoriana Auroviliana
Concerts coming up soon… (February 2011) 8 years ago, in autumn 2002, 10 singers (Anandamayi, Nuria, Firooza, Eliane, Ane, Tineke, Paul Teuben, Martin B., Gilles B. & Tom) started the AV Renaissance Cappella with Eugeen. Since then we have performed 10 series of concerts totaling about 95 pieces, mainly from the Western European Renaissance repertoire, both sacred motets and profane madrigals. We had very vibrant diverse programs: Italian, English & French love madrigals (2002/3), El Siglo de Oro Espagnol, Spanish motets (2004), La settimana Santa, Venetian & Roman sacred music (2005), Amor’e Morte with Petrarca madrigals (2006), Lagrime di S.Pietro (2007), Abouth Death and beyond… (2008), Musica Passionis Veneziana (2009), De profundis calamavi, salva nos, (2010). Today, the AV Cappella has grown and 16 singers enjoy the weekly Saturday rehearsals in Pitanga. The main idea is that singers should be willing to first prepare, by themselves or amongst each other, the music material. Once we then get together for a rehearsing period of 4 to 5 months, we can focus on the musical and textual interpretation of the material: the phrasing, balance, articulation, voice combination coloring, text pronunciation, dynamics and musical expression. It has been a great joy and privilege to plow through all these Renaissance masterpieces. In February 2011 the AV Cappella will present a new series of concerts: “Gli Oltremontani” (Flemish composers at Italian courts & cathedrals) with works by Giaches de Wert, Jakob Arcadelt, Adriaen
Willaert & his teacher Jean Mouton, Willaert’s pupil Cypriano de Rore, and his successor at San Marco in Venice: Claudio Monteverdi, the first Italian composer to take that position after 200 years Flemish monopoly at most European courts and cathedrals. The program will be a mix of profane Italian madrigals and sacred motets (with an absolute masterpiece: Te Deum Patrem (1559), a complicated double motet in triple canon for 7 voices by Willaert). On the 6th of February there was also another series by the Schola Gregoriana Auroviliana, a small group of 7 singers (Andrea, Ane, Carl, Elsa, Helga, Marijke & Michel) who performed liturgical Gregorian Chant pieces from the Middle Ages, mostly 8-9th Century. The theme “Lux ex Oriente” (Light from the East) for these concerts was centered around the Feast of Purification of February 2nd (Candlemas) and chant pieces were taken from the Roman office liturgy: hymns, antiphons, anticles, psalms, responsories and mass chants, which are preserved in neumatic notation in the famous 10th century “Codex Hartker” (SG 390-1) from the Abbey of Sankt Gallen (CH). The singers performed these chants in transcriptions from the original codex. Eugeen Liven d’ Abelardo. Rehearsal Picture AV Cappella (January 2011): Names of singers from left to right: Elke, Anandamayi, Carine, Helga, Marijke, Elsa, Eugeen, Uma, Véronique, Tineke, Ane, Carl, Janaka, Lucas, Michel, Gilles.
Thanks to the contributors: Christoph, Don, Grace,Krishna, Magica, Marco, Marie, Mauna, Miniature, Renu, Ramesh.
A letter from an anonymous appreciator of Udavi School’s production of ‘Savitri’ How to stage a story of epic proportions with Tamil teen performers? A big undertaking, when it is mostly about the words. A tough assignment. Savitri lovers were thoroughly charmed. And plenty of beautiful moments when the native Indian culture illuminated the English script.Youthful actors untrained or unused to depicting a character, so the audience had a candid and touching glimpse of naturalness, heart and soul, and personality. This production had a lot of heart. Youthful creativity co-created a contemporary twist on an ageless classic. Casting: really good, amazing. Photos: quite effective. Production: straightforward and bare, but with all the magic of theatre.