May 5, 2017
New York 10128
USA
On Friday, May 5, the Guggenheim Museum introduces three newly acquired artworks, performed for the first time in the United States, by Amalia Pica (b. 1978, Neuquén, Argentina), Naufus Ramírez-Figueroa (b. 1978, Guatemala City), and OPAVIVARÁ!, a collective based in Rio de Janeiro. Organized by curator Pablo León de la Barra with assistant curator Amara Antilla, the evening marks the first public event supported by the Guggenheim’s recently formed Latin American Circle, a group of art patrons and collectors dedicated to raising awareness of and support for contemporary Latin American art.
Amalia Pica’s Asemble (2015) takes the form of a procession involving more than two dozen participants, the circular form of which evokes a universal emblem of assembly, and explores the challenges of democratic consensus. Naufus Ramírez-Figueroa’s A Brief History of Architecture in Guatemala (Breve Historia de la Arquitectura en Guatemala, 2010) is a dance performed in costumes modeled after iconic Mesoamerican building typologies—a Mayan pyramid, a colonial church, a modernist block—and examines the tendency of architecture to memorialize regimes of power and exploitation. Lastly, in Kitchen Drumming (Batuque na cozinha, 2013/17) by OPAVIVARÁ!, basic kitchen tools mounted to the body become percussive instruments in a performance that fuses celebration and protest by evoking carnival parades, marching bands, and local anti-government demonstrations.
Since the 1960s, the Guggenheim Museum has presented numerous performances in the rotunda by artists including Marina Abramović, Philip Glass, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Pierre Huyghe, Joan Jonas, Meredith Monk, and John Zorn as well as performance-based exhibitions and installations by Matthew Barney and Tino Sehgal. Recognizing performance and time-based media as an essential aspect of art practice, and the issues it raises—regarding duration and ephemerality, the role of the document and the function of memory, the value of labor and the significance of personal interaction—the Guggenheim remains committed to the process of acquiring, maintaining and displaying ephemeral, durational works of art.
A reception and private view of the current exhibitions Visionaries: Creating a Modern Guggenheim and The Hugo Boss Prize 2016: Anicka Yi, Life Is Cheap will follow the performances. Special rates for members and students (with valid ID). Walk-up tickets for the program will be made available at the door beginning at 6:30 pm on a first-come, first-served basis.
Support for the performances is provided by Guggenheim Latin American Circle members Ximena Caminos and Alan Faena, Catherine Petitgas, and Camila Sol de Pool.
About the Latin American Circle
Formed in 2016, the Latin American Circle is a dynamic group of art collectors actively involved in contemporary art and culture in Latin America. Dedicated to advising on and advocating for the Guggenheim’s Latin American contemporary art initiatives, the group facilitates the museum’s ongoing efforts to diversify and strengthen its programming and collection through both emerging and established artists from Latin America.
About the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation
Founded in 1937, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation is dedicated to promoting the understanding and appreciation of art, primarily of the modern and contemporary periods, through exhibitions, education programs, research initiatives, and publications. The Guggenheim network that began in the 1970s when the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, was joined by the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Venice, has since expanded to include the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao (opened 1997) and the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi (currently in development). The Guggenheim Foundation continues to forge international collaborations that celebrate contemporary art, architecture, and design within and beyond the walls of the museum, including the Guggenheim UBS MAP Global Art Initiative and The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Chinese Art Initiative.
More information about the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation can be found at guggenheim.org.
Visionaries: Creating a Modern Guggenheim is made possible by Lavazza. Major support is provided by Bank of America.
The Leadership Committee for Visionaries: Creating a Modern Guggenheim is gratefully acknowledged for its generosity. Funding is also provided by the William Talbott Hillman Foundation.
The Hugo Boss Prize 2016 is made possible by HUGO BOSS.
