Aire - Poughkeepsie, Hudson Valley, NY - June 18, 2016
"Aire – Visual Concert for Nomads” is a cinematic, musical and poetic piece created and directed by Javier Moreno (composition, double bass) Laia Cabrera (filmmaker and video artist) in collaboration with Isabelle Duverger (animation and projection mapping) that travels through time and space, for those seeking permanently, never having the feeling of forever.
The piece is designed as a site-specific visual concert, conceived from an original musical suite and developed as collaboration into an allegory of images and immersive video mapped projection design on an architectural space. Exploring the nomadic nature of our lives in a geographical and emotional level, we invite the viewer on an adventure through the senses, where love and traveling are intertwined in an inseparable way, telling the story of the ephemeral and the eternal.
This project, forged in New York, searches new forms of expression within the creative frame of contemporary art. The creation of suggestive atmospheres sustains a collective pulse accentuated by the international diversity of its artists.
"Aire – Visual Concert for Nomads” is community event supported by NeighborWorks America and Arts Mid-Hudson, in cooperation with Poughkeepsie Open Studios.
The project is made possible with funds from the Decentralizated Program, a rectand program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo, and the New York State Legislature, and administrated by Art Mid-Hudson.
The first version of this current project, "Aire - Visual Concert for Nomads", premiered at the Tempietto di Bramante, Real Academia de España in Rome, Italy, June 2014 and was presented as a feature event as part of Art All Night DC 2015, Washington, DC, USA, October 2015 and in Poughkeepsie, NY June 2016.
The Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory - June 18, 2016
8 North Cherry St - By the Poughkeepsie Public Safety Building
REVIEWS
Arts event spurs strong community response
"On Saturday night, June 18, following Poughkeepsie Open Studios, an art walk event in celebration of the vibrant art community in downtown Poughkeepsie, the community returned to the Middle Main neighborhood after sundown to enjoy a performance that included a light show and live music experience at the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory.
This cinematic, musical and poetic piece was titled "Aire — Visual Concert for Nomads" and was created and directed by Javier Moreno (musical composition), Laia Cabrera (video artist and filmmaker) and Isabelle Duverger (animation and projection mapping). The piece consisted of an abstract video projected to map the 5,000-square-foot west-facing exterior of the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory, set to original jazz-influenced, classical compositions played by a live, five piece band.
Many attendees visited Main Street businesses to pick up dinner to-go, or brought food from home and took the opportunity to have a picnic with their friends, surrounded by the community. They set up lawn chairs and picnic blankets on the pavement of the parking lot that sits between the Underwear Factory and the Poughkeepsie Public Safety Building, from which firemen enjoyed the performance from a special vantage point atop the roof.
The team of artists who shared their gifts with Poughkeepsie that evening had found Arts Mid-Hudson while searching for grant opportunities. When they called to find out more, they were connected to the lead organizer of Poughkeepsie Open Studios, Jeff Aman. The artists visited a few significant buildings in the area, but were drawn to the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory for its location and iconic windows. They worked with Jeff and Hudson River Housing, the organization which owns this historic mill building, to implement their project, and the show was executed seamlessly under a beautiful clear sky and a full moon.
“Aire” received rave reviews from viewers and praise from Hudson River Housing’s construction manager and director of organizational and community development, who are spearheading the redevelopment of the Poughkeepsie Underwear Factory. The feeling among many viewers was that this was a true spectacle that could have taken place in any world city, and that we were lucky that it took place in Poughkeepsie.
The comments that closely mirrored the mission of the artists and the composition of the audience made Poughkeepsie an ideal place for this performance. The artists’ intention was to give a performance that “travels through time and space, for those seeking permanently, never having the feeling of forever” and to be an “adventure of the senses.”
Members of the audience and of the broader community come from a wide variety of backgrounds and share the value of celebrating uniqueness and the lessons that can be learned from people of other cultures and ethnicities. Many are world travelers or immigrants who have chosen Poughkeepsie as their home for its rich diversity and geographical location between the Catskill Mountains and New York City. These are just a few of the characteristics that show how Poughkeepsie is adventurous and "seeking" community."
by Emma Flynn, USA TODAY, June 30, 2016
