DAN PERJOVSCHI - World Attractions
11.05 - 24.06.2017
Sandwich assumes, this time, not so much the space it fills, but the actual physical limits that define it, and Dan Perjovschi finds the most direct way to bring value to the material they were made of, more than 30 years ago. Sandwich is made of rusty metal sheets, and that's where everything started from.
For World Attractions, Dan Perjovschi has created an infiltration method, first among the world art scene – curators, artists, art institutions that were asked to contribute to the project, and then in various private spaces, by using one of the most commonly spread symbolic objects - the fridge magnet. A special contribution was made by the curator Iara Boubnova from ICA – Sofia Gallery, through a selection of works from the ongoing project Museum Souvenirs from the Non-existing Museum for Contemporary Art. Among the project's contributors there are KIASMA Helsinki, NBK Berlin, Kunsthalle Hamburg, TATE Modern, MoMA, Arrow Factory Beijing, and many others.
“A gallery in-between two metal storage units, on the outskirts of Bucharest, behind Casa Scânteii (former Communist landmark, t.n.) can be more globally known than a national museum located in the city center, surrounded by a wall. I also wanted to make something unusual. Everyone expects me to draw something. Well…
For the last 30 years I've been happily contributing to any artists' or curators' attempts of creating something new and I'm always amazed by the energy and ingenuity of the younger generations. The old ones are making memorial houses for themselves, while these young ones are creating platforms for others… Sandwich is also a recovery of the manually privatized common space. The common Combinat is now private studios. If it wasn't for these studios and this kind of privatization, this common fortune would have ended up in smoke. The community, the art scene is always questioned. Sandwich is a response to the problem.
As the postman used to say: I've brought you some more sandwiches.” (D.P.)
World Attractions is the 6th Sandwich project and it marks the debut of the 2nd year of activity. At the opening, a series of objects that document all the previous projects was released for sale.
Dan Perjovschi is one of the most critically acclaimed Romanian contemporary artists, his international career spanning more than 30 years. His numerous solo and group shows were held at galleries and museums like MoMA, New York (US), Rupert (LTU), Kiasma (FIN), Reykjavik Museum of Art (ISL), Van Abbe Museum (NL), Tate Modern (UK), Para/Site Art Space (HK) and others. Some of his most important art prizes are George Maciunas Prize (2004), ECF Princess Margriet Award (2013, with Lia Perjovschi), and Rosa Schapire Art Prize (2016).