Paz Rojo & Cristian Duarte
"a piece...together?"

"a piece together?" "a piece...together?" is an artistic framework that holds the question and the problem of: what, what for, to whom, which and how WE is, from a variety of practices (choreographic, diagrammatic, experimental, performative) with which we pretend to communicate the question of WE today, as one that is political, philosophical, existential, kinetic, corporeal and social expression. On the occasion of this ProSeries Project and together with the participants this research, "a piece...together?", will conclude in a performance-event at ImPulsTanz. In the framework of "a piece...together?" we elaborate strategies for problematisation of what it means today to make, to be, to move, and to think together: the meaning of the verb "to piece together" suggests an assemblage made by different parts and/or facts that are apparently incoherent and that are separated in between them. In the middle of the parts (a piece) and together (each one of us), there are suspended dots in between as little and micro parts suspended and suspending in between the thing to do and the people involved as uncertain continuities. In short, the title "a piece...together?" suggests the question for making or constructing in common, about thinking with new words and new corporeal engagements the autonomy of WE in its most embodied forms of precariousness, chaos, senselessness and dispersion; how to hold that together and what would be the implications and consequences of such. In "a piece...together?" we will propose collective games, corporeal experiments, performative anonymous gestures and cartographic practices co-relating to the indicative present of the world in between each one of us through crossings and breakthroughs in a choreography of crashes and discontinuities. In this sense, and with a co-(i)mplicated and reflective desire, which "a piece...together?" proposes for this ProSeries Project, it emphasises on the idea of a choreographing process, research, transversality and participation, becoming generator of a Choreographic-Share-Able Project. To that end, we invite participants to hold the question(s) of improvisation, unpredictability, amusement, uselessness, radicalism and (why not?) high concentration, because... How to distract and to unproject the totalising image and/or sometimes imposed project of the concept of WE? Which would be the conditions and the necessary practices that could liberate its sense? How can we dispose the sense of WE without legitimising it or, doing it, under any democratic premise of equality? How can we dispose WE in a plural and co-implicated way? Is it possible to sustain a coherent WE in plurality? And for how long? How can we dispose the body and its senses in a horizontal, plural and sharable way (without the predominance of the I/eye?) With what kind of tonalities can we dispose body and thought if we expose the sense of WE in plurality? In another way: Could we invent a name that also sensibilises WE as one that doesn’t know how to articulate itself yet, and probably will never do? Which is the use and value of being and losing time together? Isn’t it true that sometimes losing time (which, who's, what time?!) is a way to give time and thus to open other fields of perception and sensibility out of the dominant and known ones? What does imply to reconsider perceptively and sensibly the use, the value, the production, the functionality and the time of our implication in the world? "a piece...together?" is a framework created in 2010. For more information about the framework and crossers-collaborators please check: www.apiecetogether.blogspot.com Cristian Duarte (São Paulo) graduated in Advertising and Creation from the Communication and Arts Department at Mackenzie University - São Paulo. Since 1995 he has been dedicated to contemporary dance, to artistic creations, investigative projects and body studies initiated with Cia. Estudio Nova Dança in São Paulo. In 2002, he graduated from P.A.R.T.S., Brussels. From 2007-2010, he coordinated the work platform DESABA in partnership with Thelma Bonavita in São Paulo - an initiative that focused on developing tools and practices for dance creation as well as documentation strategies and performative actions. In September 2010, he took part in the 3rd cycle of the new research project by Nada Gambier (Finland/Brussels), which took place at the "institute for provocation" (formerly known as TIM) in Beijing. In collaboration with Paz Rojo (Madrid), he facilitates, coordinates and produces the work frame "a piece…together?" which investigates different artistic practices, experiential archives, gestures and experiments in between words, actions and inter corporeal experiences. Among his works are: "O Revisor em Série #" (2009-2011, São Paulo), the creation and direction of a solo dance piece in collaboration with the dancer Leandro Berton; "Tombo" (2009, São Paulo) for DESABA, in collaboration with Thelma Bonavita and Thiago Granato; a.o. www.arqueologiadofuturo.blogspot.com Paz Rojo (Madrid) is a choreographer, dancer, performer, researcher and pedagogue. She graduated in choreography at the School for New Dance Development, Amsterdam (SNDO- 1996-2000 Amsterdam Schools for the Arts). Since 2001 she creates her own work: "It’s my ass you’ve been thinking about" (2001-2009); "This body doesn’t have a title yet" (2002); "Basic Dance" (2004-2006) and "After Talk" (2009-2010); "We think, we like that" (in the framework of "piece...together?", Sao Paulo 2010); "Lo que sea moviéndose así" (comissioned by LEGO/EXFESTIVAL organised by LA PORTA, Barcelona, 2011). For the last six years she has been producing performative interventions in alternative formats of exhibition and presentation such the project "These Theses" (2004-2009) with Gesture 1 "this is love" (a letter to the spectator, 2004); Gesture 2 "This is Hospitality" (a staged dialogue together with curator Christa Spatt at the Anatomical Theatre Revisited conference in the University Theatre, 2006) and Gesture 3 "This is Fidelity" (an intervention-response to Ivana Müller's video lecture "On Belief", 2007); "Blanca Nieves no está muerta" (2009 -a diary performatively read as an ex/student) for the Spring Dance Festival in Utrecht in collaboration with SNDO/AHK Theaterschool; "The Commission" (2009), a commissioned piece for the festival IM Together (Grand Theater, Groningen). Since 2005 she has been active in organising, coordinating, curating and facilitating various frameworks, discussions, workshops and projects which involve education, research and artistic production, such the project "Vocabulaboratories" with the activist and academic Manuela Zechner (2007/2009, which includes laboratories internationally engaged with different contexts – social, artistic-experimental and a publication); "LISA" former artistic platform that fomented interdisciplinary projects, experimental frame-works, curating projects related to alternative modes of artistic and performative production with projects such as "Structure Multifunction", "An Academy", "Lisa meets Sophie", "Lisa live(s) at kikker"; the festival "Im Together" that she coordinated together with Ivana Müller (Groningen, 2009). Currently she facilitates, coordinates and produces the work frame "a piece…together?" (2010-2011) with Cristian Duarte; she is working together with Diego Gil and Igor Dobricic in the project "The half"; she is also an adviser and teacher at the School for New Dance Development and have created the experimental pedagogic project "Choreography: a problem to practice" which she teaches independently and in international educational institutions.