A meditation on human violence and the possibility of transformation, Fire for Water is a new solo performance by Los Angeles based artist MPA. The duality of fire as a force of both creation and destruction is a metaphor that burns throughout the piece, igniting the complicated entanglements between wounds and armaments, protection and oppression, spectacles and wars. Led by an original soundtrack, the piece enacts a dream-like space where different visions appear. Water vessels, armors, fires, and telepathic means are characters in a story that unfolds across different modes of being. Speaking to the wounds that inhabit us, self-armaments are undone, leaving space to the desire to be wet and to be with water.
In her work, MPA explores meditative, durational, theatrical, and actionist modes of performance to engage “the energetic” as a potential material in live work. Enriched with ritual and theatricality, her performances and installations have critically examined behaviors of power, such as the global arms race, patriarchy, capitalism, and life on other planets. Departing from the question “Can we stop bullets with our minds?” Fire for Water develops further MPA’s investigation of psychological and esoteric dynamics propelling human violence and systems of defense.
The performance on the 21.10. will be followed by an aftertalk with MPA and artist, philosopher, and writer Snejanka Mihaylova.
A meditation on human violence and the possibility of transformation, Fire for Water is a new solo performance by Los Angeles based artist MPA. The duality of fire as a force of both creation and destruction is a metaphor that burns throughout the piece, igniting the complicated entanglements between wounds and armaments, protection and oppression, spectacles and wars. Led by an original soundtrack, the piece enacts a dream-like space where different visions appear. Water vessels, armors, fires, and telepathic means are characters in a story that unfolds across different modes of being. Speaking to the wounds that inhabit us, self-armaments are undone, leaving space to the desire to be wet and to be with water.
In her work, MPA explores meditative, durational, theatrical, and actionist modes of performance to engage “the energetic” as a potential material in live work. Enriched with ritual and theatricality, her performances and installations have critically examined behaviors of power, such as the global arms race, patriarchy, capitalism, and life on other planets. Departing from the question “Can we stop bullets with our minds?” Fire for Water develops further MPA’s investigation of psychological and esoteric dynamics propelling human violence and systems of defense.
The performance on the 21.10. will be followed by an aftertalk with MPA and artist, philosopher, and writer Snejanka Mihaylova.
Concept and performance | MPA |
Curatorial team | Sara Giannini with Frédérique Bergholtz (If I Can’t Dance), Catalina Insignares (Gessnerallee) and Zippora Elders (Kunstfort) |
Sound | MPA with Leroy Chaar, including tracks by MV Carbon |
Sound design | Leroy Chaar |
Lighting design | Maria Shaplin |
Scenography | MPA with contributions by Julian Abraham ‘Togar’ and Piotr Rybkowski |
Costume | MPA with Danielle Garrabrants |
Production manage | Bianca Góis Barbosa |
Team Kunstfort performance | Frédérique Bergholtz, Gert-Jan Brok, Samuel Does, Zippora Elders, Sara Giannini, Irene de Gelder, Jim van Geel, Marion Tränkle |
Financial support | Mondriaan Fonds, Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst |
Fire effects | Küde Brun |
Gessnerallee Technical Team | Piotr Rybkowski and Marina Nordsiek |
Team Kunstfort performance | André Donzé, Andreas Deblander, Barono Rigato Justheim, Kaspar Schärer, Küde Brun, Leo Sussmann, Lise Couchet and Miro Renngli |
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Commissioned by If I Can't Dance, I Don't Want To Be Part Of Your Revolution, Amsterdam, Fire for Water is co-produced with If I Can't Dance and Kunstfort bij Vijfhuizen, where it premiered in 2021. | |
Financial support | Mondriaan Fonds, Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst |