May 23 - 28, 2023 I participated in an uncurated site-specific artistic action alongside six other foreign-born Nordic-based artists as part of ARTIVAL: RE-CONNECT Nordic 2023. We met for the first time on site at Urban13 in Copenhagen and had only a few days to plan and implement our collective art experience as part of the festival. Together we produced large-scale paintings, two films, multiple installation pieces, public interactions and a collaborative painting workshop with both kids and adults.

Artists in residence: Julie Smith-Belton, Valentina Brava, ONDI, Tamar Hadechian, Romain Lliedo, Alex Markwith. Organized by Nicol Savinetti and Immart; supervised and “uncurated” by Angelique Sanossian. It was a pleasure to be joined by Jaana Simula and Alex Kollerová of Globe Art Point. A huge thank you to the staff of Urban13 and everyone involved.

Collaborative Group Painting Workshop

One kid in our group had a Pikachu toy which became the inspiration for this collaborative masterpiece.

Children and adults work side-by-side. Even for some of the adults, it was their first time using spray paint.

Once Pikachu appeared, a request came to paint Blastoise. It took four people to bring this classic ‘mon to life.

Each collaborative painting may taken to the “street art gallery wall” when someone decides it is finished.

With collage materials on hand, some canvases became three-dimensional. Over the course of one day, we covered some advanced topics in art theory.

A great example.

The first stage. We painted each blank canvas a solid color. Covering the canvas first allowed participants to be more free, letting go of the fear of starting from scratch.

What is Artival?

ARTIVAL is a multilingual cultural festival which takes place across the Nordic region in 2023. ARTIVAL brings artists, cultural workers and organisations together in a sustainable manner to co-create and reflect on issues of inclusion and belonging through exhibitions, performances, talks, workshops and recitals.

ARTIVAL reimagines the boundaries of the classic arts festival by placing artists, the artistic process and advocacy at the center: it is about bringing people and places together, creating meaningful and enriching experiences; and about gaining a clearer understanding of different processes, perspectives and viewpoints that exist in local artscapes. While maintaining relevance and high quality standards, the artworks, materials produced and the audiences who bear witness are secondary.

ARTIVAL 2023 takes place in Stockholm, Helsinki, Oslo, Bornholm, Malmö and Copenhagen.

Full programming: https://immart.dk/artival2023-program/

About IMMART

Founded in 2016, IMMART (International Migration Meets the Arts) is a Copenhagen-based non-profit which co-creates opportunities for networking, knowledge exchange, and paid work in the arts and culture scene at home and abroad, no matter where you are from or what your cultural heritage is!

Read more: https://immart.dk/

Finnissage reception Saturday 27 May 14:00 -16:00

URBAN13
Bispeengen 20, 2000 Frederiksberg, Copenhagen, Denmark

www.urban13.dk/