Als ich 2022 in die Redaktion von GAT eingestiegen bin, habe ich erstmals verschiedene befreundete Künstler:innen im Archiv gesucht und wurde dabei immer fündig, da GAT mit seiner Berichterstattung und dem Veranstaltungskalender das Kulturgeschehen kontinuierlich abbildet.
Im Zuge dieser Recherche bin ich auf eine Nachricht gestossen, die ich an dieser Stelle wiederöffentliche, weil sie den Ausgangspunkt einer langjährigen Freundschaft und eines nachhaltigen künstlerischen Austauschs beschreibt.
Zwei Frauen, die sich im Artist in Residency-Programm der Kultur Steiermark 2010 im geförderten Atelier im RONDO kennengelernt haben, leben heute noch in Graz und bereichern die Stadt, indem sie zum kulturellen Leben beitragen.
Es handelt sich dabei um die britische Literatin Kate Howlett-Jones und die iranische Künstlerin und Kuratorin Maryam Mohammadi.
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"Rondo is a special place for working"
Kate Howlett-Jones, Bericht, Mi. 24/03/2010
Bis Dezember 2010 arbeitet die britische Literatin Kate Howlett-Jones in einem von der Kultur Steiermark geförderten RONDO Künstleratelier. Für GAT untersuchte sie, welchen Einfluss die Architektur des Rondos auf einen inspirierenden Austausch zwischen den KünstlerInnen hat.
A shared kitchen, four bedsits, eight rooms, a spiral staircase and a couple of corridors. Is there anything else to the Rondo studios than an extremely nice workspace? The goal of the initiative, according to the Kultur Steiermark website, is to “produce an inspiring exchange between Styrian and international theoreticians” – but does it work? Does this bit of architectural space create community feeling? Or does a shared kitchen create more tensions than it breaks down?
This January, once again, a random group came together from around the world at Rondo. Drawn from a range of disciplines – sound art, contemporary jazz, fine art, writing, design, video art, composing classical music, architecture, photography – they are 14 very different artists in search of somewhere to work.
But despite the differences, over a couple of months the blank space between the white walls has filled. It happened quickly: the noise of shared ideas and connections being made, the smell of burning coffee and cigarettes, the hammering of Klangkünstler sorting out their sound insulation together, above all a palpable mood of industry and love for the work in hand. The knitting of a community.
Brazilian video artist Kika Nikolela described the process: “I was impressed with how fast we became like a small family. I love the variety of people - not only with different cultural backgrounds, but also artists working in different media.
Then all these people together in that building, which has a common social space we share, but also each studio a little different from the others and some we can feel became like public social spaces; specifically, Maryam's and Siegmar's. That has a lot to do with the huge window they both have in the place of one wall, so we can always see inside. It is kind of public... and fits wonderfully with their welcoming warm personalities.
I developed a routine to keep in touch with people: when I feel I haven't seen somebody the whole day, I bring them coffee. I wake Khalid almost every day. Also it is routine to spend time at Maryam's at totally strange hours (like 2-3am).”
Iranian photographer Maryam Mohammadi explained: “Here is somewhere separate from city: I like that, it gives me a feeling of greater concentration . Somehow I feel it also has its own culture , which I prefer to city culture outside. This special architecture has some other atmosphere: it gives one the feeling of softness and freedom for the mind.”
Having arrived from Brazil not knowing anyone in town, Nicolela had to make swift use of Rondo contacts for her two-month project, “The Film that is Not There”. Its realisation depended on finding people to collaborate on screenplay, music, storyboard and acting. Via the network, she found Austrian, Graz-based and other international artists, including South Korean composer Heera Kim, Belgian ensemble Branie, Syrian fine artist Khalid Al-Boushi, Finnish artist Tuuli Súnden.
The studios’ common space – the corridors - will host a joint exhibition of this project and also work by two other residents, Khalid Al-Boushi and Maryam Mohammadi, Aptly named, “Nachbarn / Neighbors” will run from 25th to 28th March. All three artists were excited by the possibilities offered by the space for staging an exhibition. Nicolela will use the long curved corridor to her apartment to conduct the viewer through drawings and photos, leading up to a film projection. Fellow Rondo resident Heera Kim has written her a haunting soundtrack that exploits the echo and acoustics created by the curving, glass-walled corridor.
Khalid Al-Boushi described Rondo as a “special place for working”: “I boil some water and make some coffee, I can hear my friends laughing outside .. on the fifth floor, it must be the Brazilian artist and the Korean composer. So, let us drink coffee together.. I tell them that I heard my breath and I saw my ghost in my silent studio last night. ”
Some rooms, some artists and a couple of inspiring corridors…
AUSSTELLUNG:
"Nachbarn - Neighbours"
Mit Arbeiten von:
Khaled Al-Bhoushi [Syrien]
Kika Nicolela [Brasilien]
Maryam Mohammadi [Iran]
Der syrische Maler Khaled Al-Bhoushi, die brasilianische Künstlerin und experimentelle Filmemacherin Kika Nicolela und die iranische Fotokünstlerin Maryam Mohammadi, die im Atelier RONDO als „Nachbarn“ leben, präsentieren ihre Arbeiten der letzten Monate.
Eröffnung: 25.03.2010, 19.00 Uhr
Ausstellungsdauer: 26.03. bis 28.03.2010
Öffnungszeiten: täglich 14.00 - 19.00 Uhr
Ausstellungsort: Atelier im RONDO (4. und 5. OG), Marienplatz 1, 8020 Graz
Bildtitel: KSG
