Agnes Nedregard and Tomasz Szrama Performing in France

Artists Agnes Nedregard and Tomasz Szrama are two of the artists to be performing at the event “La désinvolture de nos gangsters” in the Parisian suburbs on June 7-9, 2013 (see interview with co-curator Arianne Foks on CPN.).

In these interviews, Agnes Nedregard and Tomasz Szrama discuss their performances at “La désinvolture de nos gangsters” and other aspects of performance art. Agnes Nedregard will be performing on June 8th and Tomasz Szrama on June 9th.

Tomasz Szrama, independent artist from Finland, has chosen performance art as the best language to express himself.

Opie Boero Imwinkelried: What is LA DESINVOLTURE DE NOS GANGSTERS?
Tomasz Szrama: I don’t know. It seems google translates it clumsily.

OI: Could you please present your own work, career or background?
TS: I prefer not to talk about career in performance context. As to the background: I was born in 1970 in Poland and have been living since 1998 in Finland. This fact had an impact on me that threw me to the direction of a more radical expression.
If this is still not enough, I’m copy-pasting my latest honest statement:
Artist statement :
I do not have any fixed views. I do not believe in any system, or any absolute truth. Cosmos expands. The world is evolving. As I age, I have more doubts. My art is in a constant flux between sarcasm and sincerity, humor and melancholy, ground and atmosphere. I am frantically trying to capture the essence of a situation, a state of mind. My performances cannot ever be completely finished. They are a forum, a space in time for interaction with the audience. I still naively believe that anyone can create a phenomenon on a cosmic scale. Then I feel it is the meaningless sacrifice of an insignificant man. I hope that in my desperate gestures viewers will identify for themselves something meaningful, even transcendent… I am fine and I’m scared to death

OI: What performance will you present and how can it be appealing to the public?
TS: I have loosely interlinked elements and ideas of how and what I will show. I have to see the space and the reaction of the audience to be able to come up with the final form of my performance. I mean, it will happen during my action.

OI: Why is it important for artists to perform abroad?
TS: It is important to travel, to trade, to exchange, to influence and to get influenced. Through the exchange of experiences it is possible to develop. Performers are not an exception here. I do not believe in the patenting of intellectual property.

OI: What could you tell us about performance art in the countries where you reside?
TS: As a cheap art discipline in an expensive country and a perfect medium to deal with frustrations, performance art is well represented in Finland and Poland.

OI: Is there anything else you would like to add? You can expand here.
TS: I would really like to expand.

Agnes Nedregard is a visual performance artist, committed to a live engagement with an audience through images and actions. Sculptural work and videos compliment the live work.
She lectures and teaches workshops, and engage in projects promoting visual performance art and artists. Based in Bergen, Norway, and Glasgow, UK, Agnes collaborates with Moray Hillary as Nedregard & Hillary, and with Raquel Nicoletti as Suspended.

Opie Boero Imwinkelried: What is LA DESINVOLTURE DE NOS GANGSTERS?
Agnes Nedregard: It is a performance event co-curated by Arianne Foks – who invited me to my great delight. I read the intent behind the event as slightly subversive, that this is where questions with no simple answers may be asked – this is an approach I very much appreciate.

OI: Could you please present your own work, career or background?
AN: I see myself as a visual performance artist – that is, I am a visual artist focusing on shared live experiences with my audience – primarily built around image, physical presence, energy and transformation. I am devoted to an exploration of the character of transience, and the rawness and unpredictability which I see as at the base of all life experience.

OI: What performance will you present and how can it be appealing to the public?
AN: I am making a performance specifically for this event and the space of Les Salaisons, inspired by the specific character of the space. I hope I will be able to present an intriguing image which might trigger questions and associations – and to connect both with the space and the people who are there. I will do my very best for it to be worth the visit, I promise!

OI: Why is it important for artists to perform abroad?
AN: It enhances our understanding of the world, and our understanding of how limited our own (cultural) perspectives can be. I believe this makes us better artists, who may be able to open questions and situations for a scrutiny and dynamic interaction with audience member’s own experiences and ideas in a way that makes art the vibrant force it should always aspire to be.

OI: What could you tell us about performance art in the countries where you reside?
AN: In Norway performance art is growing rapidly in popularity – we have recently established member organisations both in Oslo and Bergen to promote our activities, support local artists and engage in exchanges and other activities. In Scotland I also find visual art performance is becoming more visible. This is part of a global trend, though, and I am curious to see where it will take us and whether it will introduce new perspectives and growth int our art form or only be a passing fashion…?

La désinvolture de nos gangsters: http://ladesinvolturedenosgangsters.tumblr.com
LES SALAISONS
25/27 Avenue du Président Wilson, 93230 Romainville
M° Mairie des Lilas – Bus 105, arrêt Liberté
www.salaisons.org
Free Admission
Friday 7th 7-10pm
Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th 4-9pm
Also published on Dimanche Rouge Magazine www.dimancherougemag.org