Alexandra do Carmo – Studio Socialis, w/ Luisa Especial & Maud Jacquin

Friday February 1, 2013, from 6 to 8 pm.

free and open to the public.
Location: Residency Unlimited
360 Court Street (green door)
Brooklyn, NY 11231
directions here

Residency Unlimited is pleased to announce a public discussion that will examine the project Studio Socialis by New York-based Portuguese artist Alexandra do Carmo. Comprised of videos, drawings and documentation, this work reflects do Carmo’s interest in social studies and takes further her investigation of the artist’s role and of his or her relationship with the audience.

Studio Socialis examines the social representations of the artist’s studio and interrogates the physical and operative boundaries that separate or, on the contrary, connect art with other forms of creative and professional activities. Through a methodology of field research that involved conducting a series of interviews with various professionals in their working environments, do Carmo assembles multiple viewpoints from individuals outside the art world, constructing a collective portrayal of the artist’s studio. The spatial reference to the studio becomes a device that triggers ideas about the nature of the artist’s work in a broader sense and about his/her contribution to society. Do Carmo seeks to detect the opportunities of collaborating with her interviewees by bringing up hypothetical projects with them. In this case, would the interviewees become co-creators of the work? If so, what are the artistic and ethical consequences? And is ‘the artist´s studio’ a nomadic concept that can be activated in any space appropriated by the artist, whether it is the kitchen of a restaurant, a scientific laboratory or a psychiatrist’s office? Together with the artist, curators Luisa Especial and Maud Jacquin will debate these questions, in conjunction with a screening of video excerpts of Studio Socialis.

This event at RU is organised within the framework of RU’s yearly public program and initiated by Atelier Concorde, in Lisbon, where do Carmo’s work will be exhibited in May 2013.

Please join us for this event at Residency Unlimited in Carroll Gardens on Friday February 1, 2013, from 6 to 8 pm. This event is free and open to the public.

Bios:
Alexandra do Carmo (b. 1966) is a Portuguese artist based in New York since 2000. She studied at AR.CO in Lisbon, Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and the Whitney Museum Independent Study Program in New York. She was part of the residency programs at Location One in New York and the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin. She has exhibited widely in Portugal and internationally in the USA, Germany, Spain and Ireland. Her work is represented by Carlos Carvalho Gallery in Lisbon.

Luísa Especial has worked on several projects related to curating, writing and research for a diverse range of museums and art collections. She is based in Lisbon, Portugal and is currently working as part of the coordination team of two independent organizations: Atelier Concorde and Carpe Diem Arte e Pesquisa. She holds a BA in Art History, an MA in Curatorial Studies and a PhD in Sociology of Art. In 2011, she obtained a fellowship from the Portuguese ministry of culture to work at RU and is now one of RU Curatorial Consultants.

Maud Jacquin is RU’s associate curator.