One of the most relevant topics in recent times has been and remains the theme of the ecological state of our planet and its close relationship with excessive consumption and production of comfort objects, global climate change and many other problems reflected within the human mind. Changes in the external environment actively require human changes, a transition to awareness and acceptance of full responsibility for one’s choice. The values ​​created by the industrial rise led to the ignorant desire for urbanization and chaos of total tension, thereby losing the significance of our connection with the present moment, nature, naturalness. In the performance “Radiance,” the multidisciplinary artist Mitya Staev puts himself in a spatiotemporal experiment of balancing, exploring conscious control and allowing the body/mind to completely surrender for authentic movement. In recent years, Mitya has studied the therapeutic techniques of authentic movement, Butoh’s dance, Vipassana meditation, and many other instruments that cultivate awareness, a subtle connection with oneself and others. The artist’s integration into the  North and South American shamans community gave him tremendous experience in understanding the unity of man with nature, balancing the idea of ​​himself as the center of the whole and smallest particle of the universe. The action begins in the “landing” zone with a parachute created from fifty plastic bags collected by the artist for reuse. The space with sand and stones is also a material for the study of communication, attention reactions with natural material. Metal, stone, water, and minerals are reflected in music created by the artist, from a collection of sounds extracted from them. Guests of the space are not only observers but also participants in the performance, enabling the artist to respond to impulses of attention and pass them through his body. As in Staev’s previous performance “Light cuts”, in collaboration with the Scottish artist Tassi Thompson, the body becomes the main tool for studying the flow of nature’s processes and human awareness not only as their guide but also as the creator of the present.

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Performance curated by   Alexander Blanar with support of   WLH Art Consultancy and  Ludovic De Saint Sernin. 

Radiance. Photo credit: Oleg Kokhanyuk