5 minute read
Georgia Lale: Art with an Impact
by Stephanie McGovern
The function of art plays a deeply complex and subjective role in the lives of artists and viewers alike. In some cases art may stand firm in its aesthetics alone, while in others, it can be used as a catalyst to disrupt, protest and initiate a larger conversation about the world around us. Performance and visual artist Georgia Lale embodies this concept in their work and does not separate the intrinsic nature of art making from political and social causes. There is no boundary between art and activism in their interdisciplinary practice, which spans the mediums of performance, sculpture, video and installation. Using their body as a main source of material, Georgia creates visual dialogues around topics including the refugee crisis, gender equality, the healthcare system and immigration.
Georgia has been a longtime member of the SVA community since enrolling in the MFA Fine Arts program in 2014. They have since become a student of Continuing Education (SVACE) and participated in our 2021 Photoville exhibition titled “These Years.”
Originally from Athens, Greece, Georgia first started working in performance through video during their undergraduate study. Once enrolled as a student at SVA, Georgia expanded their exploration in performance and used the medium as a platform to consider issues around gender equality, female sexuality and women's rights. “I did this performance where I was lying inside a plastic bag filled with feminine sanitary products that were painted in a way that looked used. Subsequently, the body was also used and thrown away,” Georgia said. “I related this ‘trash’ to human fluids, what those mean and how we have this taboo [around menstruation].”
Georgia’s current 2023 project is titled Family Portraits—a fundraising campaign to generate relief funds for earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria. The Family Portraits are a series of elegant 17"x11" ink drawings of tulips on bristol board, ranging in color and gesture.
The series was inspired by Georgia’s performance #OrangeVest, a project that began in October 2015, which examined the refugee crisis in Europe During this period, refugees were crossing the Aegean Sea situated between Turkey and Greece. “I saw footage during the PBS news hour and immediately the images struck me,” said Georgia. “It was very personal.” Both of Georgia’s grandfathers were refugees from Turkey in Greece, who had also crossed the Aegean Sea under similar conditions. “Seeing these people arrive in Greece ... it felt like they were my family,” she explained. Georgia knew that their last name was Turkish and began doing research, leading Georgia to discover that it actually means “tulip.” Sixty percent of the proceeds raised through Family Portraits will go toward UNFPA—the lead United Nations sexual and reproductive health and rights agency. Currently, UNFPA is providing mobile health clinics, safe spaces, and dignity kits to girls and women impacted by the earthquakes.
#OrangeVest was one of Georgia’s first public interventions, as another layer of their practice is stepping out of the studio and crossing into public space. Georgia’s first iteration was performed solo wearing all black and a bright orange life vest—a symbol of mourning those lost in the crossing of the Aegean Sea. The first performance took place unannounced at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, where Georgia walked from the Syrian art section to the Greek and Roman Art galleries, to symbolically recreate the refugees’ route. “I also wanted to create a commentary about the artifacts being refugees themselves—to question how [the objects] ended up in The Met.”
Over the course of a year, #OrangeVest grew into organized monthly performances in different locations with volunteer participants. The performances would consist of the group slowly walking together and wearing coordinated life vests. “We had a press person who would hand out stickers with #OrangeVest," said Georgia. “People could get more information about the performance and about the refugee crisis.” This series culminated with one final action at the European Quarter in Brussels as part of the 14th annual Nuit Blanche Festival, covering the theme “Borders.” The piece was performed by Georgia, Brussels locals and recently arrived refugees who were also artists. Together, 30 performers walked around the Quarter and posed in front of the European Parliament, the Greek Embassy and the European Commission—all while interacting with one another and forming new bonds—bridging their differences in a newly shared space. After the festival, the refugees who participated in the action wrote to Georgia expressing that they were deeply moved by the performance, and that it reminded them to keep moving, to keep fighting for life and to keep reaching for their goals.
Georgia Lale’s artistic conviction exemplifies the substantial impact art can have. Through care and empathy, endurance and resolution, Georgia's work can create great shifts in the art world and in ourselves.
