Marco Donnarumma /
Margherita Pevere

Marco Donnarumma, Margherita Pevere

Meta.Morf 2024 – [up]Loaded Bodies / Kjøpmannsgata Ung Kunst / Performance April 19 /
Student NOK 80 / Ordinary NOK 160: Ticket

Eingeweide: from the 7 Configurations cycle (2018)

What does it mean to create a truly autonomous machine, independent from human control? And what happens when organs live outside of a body? Perhaps the human body’s only real power is to take on ever changing forms and identities.

“Eingeweide” is the staging of a ritual of coalescence. Inhabiting a desolated, surreal landscape, two human bodies become violently entangled with an artificially intelligent (AI) prosthesis, out-of-body organs, relics from computer server farms, and animal remains.

The prosthesis uses AI algorithms to learn in real time how to move, exist and perform on stage. The organs pulsate, leak, and crawl on the floor, bearing traces of the microbial cultures which created them. Sounds from the performers’ muscular activity are amplified and transformed by AI algorithms into a powerful and visceral auditive experience, submerging the spectators.

The performers’ bodies become, thus, one and multiple, at times asserting, at times misplaced. They are the means of a drastic form of bodily experimentation, where alternate identities emerge from the convergence of human, machine, and micro-organisms. In such a configuration, each element drastically affects the other. Physicality and psyche are meshed up, shaken, and probed.

A far cry from trans-humanist ideals or techno-phobic claims, “Eingeweide” creates its own vocabulary of symbolic meaning, manifesting the relationship between humans, technology, and living-others as a harsh, poetic, and humbling form of intimacy.

“Eingeweide” is part of the “7 Configurations” cycle (2014-2019), a series of works by Marco Donnarumma on the conflicts surrounding the human body in the era of artificial intelligence (AI).

“Eingeweide”, 2018, Evening-length piece for two performers, machine and biomaterials. Photo: Giovanni De Angelis.

Credits
Eingeweide
Concept: Marco Donnarumma
Artistic direction: Marco Donnarumma, Margherita Pevere
Dramaturgy, choreography: Marco Donnarumma, Margherita Pevere
Performers: Marco Donnarumma, Margherita Pevere
Music, interaction programming: Marco Donnarumma
Stage design: Marco Donnarumma, Margherita Pevere
Light design: Andrea Familari
Performer’s biofilm mask: Margherita Pevere
Physiological computing software and hardware: Marco Donnarumma
Artwork’s description texts: Marco Donnarumma
Photography: Manuel Vason
Live photography: Giovanni De Angelis, Nada Zgank | Kapelica
Video trailer: Marco Donnarumma
Production management: Kotryna Slapsinskaite

Robotic prosthesis
Concept: Marco Donnarumma
Morphology, engineering: Marco Donnarumma
Fabrication, AI programming: Marco Donnarumma
Neurorobotics scientific advice: Prof. Manfred Hild
Scientific support: Neurorobotics Research Lab, Beuth Hochschule, Berlin
Additional AI programming: Alberto de Campo
Engineering design, 3D modelling and 3D printing: Christian Schmidts
Visual design: Ana Rajcevic
Biofilm skin: Margherita Pevere

Eingeweide is an artwork and a production by Marco Donnarumma co-directed with Margherita Pevere, realized as a part of the 7 Configurations cycle ideated and produced by Marco Donnarumma. Eingeweide was commissioned by CTM Festival (DE) and realised in the context of Donnarumma’s Fellowship at the Graduiertenschule, Berlin University of the Arts. 

marcodonnarumma.com

Margherita Pevere (DE/IT) is an internationally acknowledged artist and researcher working across biological arts and performance with a distinctive visceral signature. Her inquiry hybridizes biotechnology, ecology, queer and death studies to create arresting installations and performances that trail today’s ecological complexity. Her body of work is a blooming garden crawling with genetically edited bacteria, cells, sex hormones, microbial biofilm, blood, slugs, growing plants and decomposing remains. Pevere has completed a practice-based doctorate in Artistic Research at Aalto University, Department of Arts, Design and Architecture. Her work has been shown at Volkstheater Wien (AT), Kiasma Theatre (FI), Kapelica Gallery (SI), KONTEJNER (HR), Bioart Society (FI), Ars Electronica (AT), Bandit Mages (FR), Art Laboratory Berlin (DE), Donaufestival (AT), Casa Viva (MX), Foundation L’Art Pur (SAU), Kunstquartier Bethanien (DE), among others. Currently, she is developing her new project “Lament” with the support of the NaturArchy – Resonances Project at the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, and she is artist in residence at the ENLIGHT-TEN+ immunology consortium. Pevere has given a number of talks and lectures that were organized by venues and platforms such as ZKM (DE), Quo Artis Foundation (ES), Disruption Network Lab (DE), and Werkleitz Festival (DE). Pevere is a member of the Finnish Bioart Society and the Queer Death Studies Network, and an affiliated researcher of the Eco- and Bioart Lab. Her work received individual and group grants from the JRC Resonances Project, EMARE Program, Kone Foundation, Finnish National Agency for education, Fonds Darstellende Künste: Sonderprogramm Autonom, Koprodutionsfond Berliner Senat für Europa und Kultur, PACT Zollverein, and Berlin Hauptstadtkulturfonds. She was a finalist in the category of Art and Science of Falling Walls, an international science platform awarding scientific breakthroughs, received an Honorable Mention by Share prize, a Digital art award by Romaeuropa Festival (with Marco Donnarumma), and a visual Art Prize by Com.It.Es. Berlin. 

margheritapevere.com | m-ooo.info | frontavacuo.com 

Together with Andrea Familari, Pevere and Donnarumma co-founded the performance group Fronte Vacuo to realize performances made of bodies, symbionts, sounds, machines, and images. 

Marco Donnarumma (DE) is an artist, performer, inventor, stage director and theorist weaving together contemporary performance, new media art and interactive computer music since the early 2000s. He manipulates bodies and invents machines, crafts choreographies and composes sounds, thus combining disciplines, media and technology into an oneiric, sensual, uncompromising aesthetics. He is internationally acknowledged for solo performances, stage productions and installations that defy genres, and where the body becomes a morphing language to speak critically of ritual, power and technology.

Touring consistently for the past fifteen years across major and independent theaters, concert halls, parking lots, squats, festivals and museums worldwide, Donnarumma’s work has been shown, among others, at Volkstheater Wien (AT), Münchner Kammerspiele (DE), Haus der Kulturen der Welt (DE), NRW Forum (DE), Ming Contemporary Art Museum (CN), Laznia Center for Contemporary Art (PL), Chronus Art Center (CN), ZKM (DE), IRCAM (FR), LABoral (ES), Kontejner (HR), tanzhaus nrw (DE), Romaeuropa Festival (IT), Ars Electronica (AT), Donaufestival (AT), Nemo Biennale/HeK Basel (FR), musikprotokoll (AT), CTM Festival (DE), transmediale (DE), Panorama Festival (BR).

Donnarumma holds a Ph.D. in performing arts, computing and body theory from Goldsmiths, University of London. Currently he is an Associate Researcher at the Intelligent Instruments Lab, Reykjavik, while recently he was a Medienkunst Fellow at medienwerk.nrw and PACT Zollverein, Essen. He has held research positions at the Akademie­ für Theater ­und Digitalität, Dortmund and at the Berlin University of the Arts in partnership with the Neurorobotics Research Laboratory. His work was funded by European Commission, Goethe-Institut, Berlin Senate, Fonds Darstellende Künste, Rockefeller Foundation, British Council and New Media Scotland. His writings are published by MIT Press, Oxford University Press, Routledge, ACM and Springer, amongst others.

marcodonnarumma.com
7c.marcodonnarumma.com

Header graphics: Giovanni-De-Angelis. Portrait photo of Margherita Pevere: Margarita Kosi.

Myriam Bleau
Nien Tzu Weng

Myriam Bleau, Nien Tzu Weng

Meta.Morf 2024 – [up]Loaded Bodies / Kjøpmannsgata Ung Kunst / Performance April 20 /

Concert night! One ticket includes the whole night with three performances.
Student NOK 100 / Ordinary NOK 200: Ticket

21:00 – 21:40
Second Self – Myriam Bleau, Nien Tzu Weng
22:00 – 22:30
Turing Gaia: Composing the ((Non)Human) – Martinus Suijkerbuijk, Øystein Fjeldbo
22:30 – 02:00
Astral Boombox DJ set! – Apex Anima

Second Self (avant-premiere), 2024

“Second Self” is an audiovisual work and the first collaboration between choreographer and performer Nien Tzu Weng and composer and digital artist Myriam Bleau. Through movement, sound, and video, the performance explores the object of the screen as a tactile interface, prosthesis, mask, and mirror.

Custom-made small LED screens of irregular shapes are worn on the bodies of the performers (Weng and Bleau). Gestures on the surface of these interactive devices inform the sonic and video elements. Amplifying the sense of touch, they reveal the porous and elusive surface delimiting our idea of a separate, autonomous self.

The project’s title, “Second Self,” refers to Sherry Turkle’s book, published in 1984. The theorist suggests that intelligent machines that exhibit human characteristics act as a mirror or ‘second self’ through which we define the image we have of ourselves. The object of the screen, omnipresent in our societies, mediates this relationship to our ‘second self,’ acting both as a portal towards a hyper-connected network and also as a mirror, reflecting back an altered image.

Through different scenes, the artists explore the symbol of the mirror, social dynamics, and the myth of Narcissus and Echo. While specular and auditory reflections (echoes) multiply as in a mirror palace, a strange ritual unfolds, the performers becoming, in turn, reflections of the other, infra-human creatures, twins, shadows, or machines.

At the center of my ironic faith, my blasphemy, is the image of the cyborg. 
– Donna Haraway, 1985

Myriam Bleau (CA) is a composer, digital artist, and performer based in Montréal. Using music and sound as a point of departure, she creates audiovisual performances, video works, installations, and interactive interfaces that articulate sound, light, and movement. Her work is mainly channeled through performance, embracing ephemeral and elusive contexts. From code and machine learning to physical computing and devices, she considers technology as another agency that co-creates the output. Her hybrid practice explores porous spaces between the physical and the virtual world, between the natural and the synthetic. Her work has been recognized and presented internationally in festivals and events such as Prix Ars Electronica (AT), Sónar (ES, HK), Transmediale (DE), Sonic Arts Award (IT), Elektra (CA), Mutek (MX, CA, JP, AR), ISEA (CA, KR), ACT (KR), L.E.V et LABoral (ES), Scopitone (FR), Café Oto (UK).

myriambleau.com

Nien Tzu Weng (TW/CA) is a Taiwanese-Canadian interdisciplinary dance artist and lighting designer based in Montreal. She aims to build bridges between disciplines, pursuing an experimental approach to contemporary performance and a laboratory-based approach to lighting design. As both a choreographer and lighting designer, Weng is curious about the relationship between movement and new media practices and plays with the balance between reality and fantasy. She uses light and multimedia in order to play with perspective, perceiving performance as a process of transmitting dialogues between inner and outer space, where presence and image build multiple, overlapping conceptions of time.

Her projects have been shared in Node Digital Festival (Frankfurt, DE), Biennale Némo (Paris, FR), Ars Electronica (Linz, AUT), Les Percéides (Percé, QC), SummerWorks (Toronto, ON), 1-act SHIFT Theatre (Vancouver, BC) as well as OFFTA Festival, Elektra, Akousma, Tangente Danse, La chapelle, and MAI Theatre in Montreal. She co-created the collective: Double Fantasy and is currently a member of LePARC (Milieux), one of the supported emerging artists with CCOV, as well as a resident artist at Topological Media Lab, where she develops her research on presence and interactivity.

nientzuweng.com

Header graphics: “Second Self”, video-still, Tanja Busking.
Portrait photo Myriam Bleau: Agustina Isidori. Portrait photo NienTzu Weng: Vjosana Shkurti

Martinus Suijkerbuijk
Øystein Fjeldbo

Martinus Suijkerbuijk, Øystein Fjeldbo

Meta.Morf 2024 – [up]Loaded Bodies / Kjøpmannsgata Ung Kunst / Performance April 20 /

Concert night! One ticket includes the whole night with three performances.
Student NOK 100 / Ordinary NOK 200: Ticket

21:00 – 21:40
Second Self – Myriam Bleau, Nien-Tzu Weng
22:00 – 22:30
Turing Gaia: Composing the ((Non)Human) – Martinus Suijkerbuijk, Øystein Fjeldbo
23:00 – 02:00
Astral Boombox DJ set! – Apex Anima

(Prelude) Turing Gaia: Composing the ((Non)Human) (2024)

“(Prelude) Turing Gaia: Composing the ((Non)Human)” is the second chapter of the artistic research project “Turing Gaia.” In Composing the ((Non)Human), Fjeldbo and Suijkerbuijk have experimentally embedded the Thermodome algorithmic ecosystem within a performance framework, creating an experimental exploration of Thermodome’s algogenesis—the primordial algorithmic soup that entangles the agent’s behavior with the Thermodome ecosystem. 

The performance is an orchestration and composition of ((Non)Human) agency where the demarcations between the human and non-human entities are delicately and thoughtfully explored. At the center of this exploration is NPC-Markov: a functional agent implemented as a digital entity with a unique sensory suite, and guided by an advanced cognitive architecture. Within a meticulously crafted virtual environment, NPC-Markov’s interactions are on one side, governed by procedural algorithms, memory processing, and environmental stimuli. On the other, its interactions are guided and modulated by the parametric control of external factors, allowing for a nuanced invocation and modulation of NPC-Marko’s behavior.

NPC-Markov is equipped with simulated sensors that intricately collect data from its environment. These sensors, particularly attuned to environmental (digital) heat, play a crucial role in the live composition process. Heat, gathered from the surroundings, is experimentally used to guide the unfolding narrative and soundscape. This unique utilization of thermal data in the artistic creation allows NPC-Markov to respond dynamically to the environment’s subtle thermal variations. This approach not only enhances the interactivity of the performance but also embeds a level of environmental responsiveness into the very core of the composition, melding the digital and the physical in a harmonious symphony.

The performance integrates elements of live gaming, setting the stage for NPC-Markov’s autonomous journey through an intricate digital landscape, unfurling in real-time. This innovative strategy crafts a living, breathing narrative and a harmonious composition, both of which dynamically evolve based on the decisions made within the game. Such interactivity introduces a captivating layer of complexity, as each in-game choice subtly steers the unfolding story and shapes the evolving soundscape. This vibrant synergy of elements is a testament to the power of algorithmic composition, where sound transcends its traditional role as a mere accompaniment and becomes a vital, interactive player in the narrative. The performance thus emerges not just as a visual spectacle but as an immersive auditory experience, where the audience is enveloped in a world where sound and story intertwine and coalesce into a singular, organic entity.

Fjeldbo and Suijkerbuijk dedicate to a role as dynamic live orchestrators within this environment, both visually and sonically. They skillfully sculpt the Thermodome, transforming it into an interactive stage where the line between a live play and digital interaction blurs. In this unique setting, the NPC responds in real-time to the human performance, creating a symbiotic exchange between the virtual and the real. Simultaneously, the human performers resonate with and adapt to the NPC’’s ‘experience’. The piece fluidly transitions between spontaneously generated content and prearranged compositions, perpetually oscillating between a quasi-theatrical format and an immersive live concert experience. This continuous interplay creates a multifaceted performance space that redefines traditional stage dynamics.

“(Prelude) Turing Gaia: Composing the ((Non)Human)” represents a thoughtful exploration into the synergistic potential of AI and interactive gaming within the realm of performance art. This work offers a rich narrative journey, masterfully blurring the boundaries between observation and participation, weaving together elements of reality and virtuality.

Supported by:  BEK – Bergen Senter for Elektronisk Kunst, Komponistenes vederlagsfond, Trondheim kommune, Norsk Kulturråd and Fond for lyd og bilde.

Martinus Suijkerbuijk’s (NL/NO) diverse background forms the blueprint of his artistic practice. He holds a degree in Automation Engineering and Industrial Design. In 2017 he graduated from the International MFA program at the Trondheim Academy of Fine Arts, where he’s also currently a PhD candidate. His work is best understood as an experimental practice that connects, translates, and operates across the borders of different media, artistic genres, and disciplines. Within his practice, he explores the fringes of art, technology, and philosophy through the potential of alliances and collaborations. His technical background has enabled him to work across industries. He has been invited to present his research and work at art institutions (ZKM, Sónar+D Barcelona, MetaMorf 2020) as well as technology conferences (CHI 2018, Philips Trend Event). Presently his artistic research centers around the possibilities of Artificial Aesthetic Agents through AI technologies and gaming engines.

martinussuijkerbuijk.net

Øystein Fjeldbo (NO) is a Trondheim-based sound artist. He holds a master’s degree in music technology from NTNU (2017). His work primarily aims to shape android auditory expressions. On one hand, he transforms synthetic starting points into something more organic, while on the other hand, he utilizes “organic” sound materials, such as field recordings and acoustic instruments, abstracting them into something more synthetic-sounding.

With the group Future Daughter, he has released music on labels like Orange Milk Records, #FEELINGS, and Kropp Uten Grenser. His projects and collaborations, both in music and installation, have been presented at institutions such as Landmark and BIT Teatergarasjen Bergen, Høstscena Ålesund, Trøndelag Centre for Contemporary Art, Sónar+D Barcelona, and ArtScience Museum Singapore.

fjeldbo.works

Header graphics: Video-still from (Prelude) Turing Gaia: Composing the ((Non)Human). Courtesy of the artists.

Apex Anima

Apex Anima

Meta.Morf 2024 – [up]Loaded Bodies / Kjøpmannsgata Ung Kunst / Performance April 20 /

Concert night! One ticket includes the whole night with three performances.
Student NOK 100 / Ordinary NOK 200: Ticket

21:00 – 21:40
Second Self – Myriam Bleau, Nien-Tzu Weng
22:00 – 22:30
Turing Gaia: Composing the ((Non)Human) – Martinus Suijkerbuijk, Øystein Fjeldbo
23:00 – 02:00
Astral Boombox – Apex Anima

Astral boombox DJ set!

Are you one of those who love art but hate art openings? Wish you could just teleport your body away from the small talk and appear in full disco attire on a burning dancefloor?

DJ Apex Anima invites you to a techno-utopian dance night, with musical gems collected on far-reaching transdimensional road trips. A night where limbs are king, and nothing can go wrong. Enough of art talk and clever conversations. Let’s move from the mental to the physical, from the platonic to the erotic, and from the static to the acrobatic!

Apex Anima (IS/ NO) is the project of visual artist and musician Unnur Andrea Einarsdóttir. Unnur Andrea started out as a singer and now focuses on writing and producing her own music, where experimental pop meets with various genres of electronica. She recently released her debut album Elf F O which has received critical acclaim in her home country Iceland, winning the Kraumur Music Awards in 2023, amongst other things. As a visual artist, she works within a variety of media, often focusing on technology-related topics. Her work was part of the FAEN exhibition in the 2020 edition of Meta.Morf, and this year, she will be presenting the work Technoflesh, developed in collaboration with German artist Panja Göbel. Technoflesh opens in Babel visningsrom for kunst on the 2nd of may. 

unnurandrea.net/apexanima

Siri Jøntvedt

Siri Jøntvedt

Meta.Morf 2024 – [up]Loaded Bodies / Multiplié dansefestival, Rosendal Teater / Dance performance April 18 @ 18:00. Ticket.

Fifty Ways to Leave a Shape (2023)

Fifty Ways to Leave a Shape is a personal solo that can be described as the internal process of having to say goodbye to a body part, a tribute to Siri Jøntvedt´s worn-out hips, and a welcoming of two brand-new joints. It is a reset in order to identify new opportunities. After more than thirty years as a dance artist, she has to teach herself to let go and not hold on. “Fifty Ways to Leave a Shape” is an exploration of the realization that everything changes, and of the search for new physical meaning – a sensory journey through the transformation and confrontation involved in leaving something behind, and finding the way into something new. Through various expressions of song, film, text, and dance, the audience can join this poetic and personal journey. The performance shows traces of what she has been through, what is to come, and a deep love of movement.

Credits
Concept, choreography, text, performer: Siri Jøntvedt
Composer, sound designer: Gyrid Nordal Kaldestad
Lighting design: Evelina Dembacke
Dramaturge, filmmaker: Darko Dragicevic
External eye, voice (Run That Body Down): Øyvind B. Lyse
Assistant: Amy Pender
Photos: Tale Hendnes (Dansens Hus) and Darko Dragičević: other pictures
Video, trailer: Vibeke Heide
Additional music: Run That Body Down (Paul Simon), Hips Don’t Lie (Shakira), and Pavane pour une infante défunte (Maurice Ravel) performed by Kari Jøntvedt.
Co-production: Dans i Trøndelag, Dansekunst i Grenland, and DansiT.

Supported by: Norwegian Arts Council, Fond For Lyd og Bilde, Ffuk, and Dansens Hus Oslo

Siri Jøntvedt (NO) is an experienced and fearless dancer with a distinctive style. Her dance is original, serious, and humorous. Since 1990, she has been active in the Norwegian and international dance field, operating between performing, choreographing, and teaching, as well as supporting other artists in their work.

Siri’s artistic practice revolves around the experimental, the personal, the human, and the honest, as an approach to creating art and to life itself.

She received her dance training at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts (KHiO), the Ballet Academy in Gothenburg, the Norwegian National Ballet School, and Merce Cunningham Studio, and through extensive studies of improvisation and various release-based and somatic dance techniques in New York and Europe.

Her body of work spans from personal to collaborative creative work, performing in works by others, as well as teaching and mentoring. Jøntvedt has performed in all sorts of venues, from large stages to small clubs, working within a wide scope of formats, from happenings to full-scale dance theatre productions.

Siri’s physical practices are based on a love for the art of improvisation, choreographic scores as well as working with voice and text. Exploration and listening are central methods, and through resonance and responding, her work connects with what goes on in society at large.

These practices support self-experience as a basis for developing material and create a space where the intuitive and formal can meet and where seriousness and humor can merge.

Siri is a dedicated teacher of release technique, improvisation, and composition, and gives classes and workshops frequently for professional dancers and dance students in Norway and abroad.

sirijontvedt.com 

Header graphics and portrait photo: Tale Hendnes