YARAT CENTRE: TAUS MAKHACHEVA CHARIVARI SOLO SHOW

12 Jul - 29 Sep 19

YARAT Contemporary Art Spaceannounces a solo exhibition Charivari from multidisciplinary artist Taus Makhacheva, running 12 July – 29 September 2019.

The artist – whose practice includes performance, film, food and objects – presents an interactive multimedia installation exploring Caucasus’ contemporaneity. The newly commissioned work is dedicated to the history of USSR circus tradition in general, and the Baku National Сircus in particular. In collaboration with architect Maria Serova, writer Alexander Snegirev and costume designer Panika Derevya, the monumental, multi-layered installation features a central sculptural element, expanding over the duration of the show through the haphazard, constantly evolving spirit of charivari.

Despite being a form of mainstream entertainment, the Soviet Circus provided an environment in which the boldest and most daring statements could be made by means of visual and performative language. Combining fact and fiction, this work uncovers the ever-fluctuating relationship between tradition, modernity and cultural authenticity in the period of transition from the Soviet to post-Soviet paradigm, into to the multiple futures of a post-post-Soviet era.

The term charivari refers to a specific circus act – a mass circus performance composed of multi-genre solo and group pieces presented simultaneously. With every act the rhythm gets faster and the technical complexity of the performance increases, as if artists were competing – showing off their comic talent and ingenuity, their skill, liveliness and temper – until ultimately the circus ring becomes an ensemble of floating and somersaulting figures.

Based on archival records, films and photographs from the Baku National Archive, Makhacheva’s installation creates a chaotic make-believe circus full of unusual creatures: a talking horse, synthetic bears, a sheep inside a gymnast inside a lion, a strongwoman accountant and a fly in a silver cape, to name a few. Inviting the viewer to ponder on a human-animal pyramid, a circus-arena birth, a VR act and many more fantastical encounters, the show acts as a witty socio-political commentary through stories from distant pasts and near futures. Charivari is a comment on the all too real circus of contemporary life.

A selection of research archival material from the National Archives of the Republic of Azerbaijan (Baku filial), Russian State Documentary Film and Photo Archive and other sources will be screened during the opening and closing weekends of the exhibition and available online at https://bit.ly/2SihXLa

Performance novellas by Alexander Snegirev available: https://bit.ly/30wAVjR

This exhibition is curated by Suad Garayeva-Maleki.

Special gratitude to Baku State Circus director Vagif Baghir-Zada; circus historian Radjab Mamedov; State Archive of Azerbaijan republic director Asger Rasulov; gymnast Tamila Nazirova; clown Lada Sanatskaya; animal trainers Tofik Akhundov and Rauf Rasulov; director of circus shows and concerts Vladimir Vavilov; archivist Aida Babazade, and poet Leyli Salayeva.

Taus Makhacheva (b.1983, lives and works in Moscow, Russia) is known predominantly for her performance and video works that critically examine what happens when different cultures and traditions come into contact with one another. Having grown up in Moscow with cultural origins in the Caucasus region of Dagestan, her artistic practice is informed by this personal connection with the co-existing worlds of pre and post Sovietisation. Oftentimes humorous, her works attempt to test the resilience of images, objects and bodies in today’s world.

Taus has a BA in Fine Art from Goldsmiths (2007) and MFA from Royal College of Art (2013).

Selected exhibitions include Liverpool Biennial (2018), Yinchuan Biennale (2018), Riga International Biennial of Contemporary Art (2018), Venice Biennial (2017); Garage Triennial of Russian Contemporary Art (Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, 2017); Museum ON/OFF (Centre Pompidou, 2016); Shanghai Biennial (2016); Kyiv Biennial (2015); Moscow Biennale (2015 and 2011); Sharjah Biennial (2013). Awarded by 6th Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art Foundation Prize (Moscow, 2015), “Future of Europe” Prize, Museum of Contemporary Art, Leipzig, (2014) and the “New Generation – Innovation” State Prize (2012).

Notes to editors:

Exhibition: Taus Makhacheva “Charivari”

Location: YARAT Contemporary Art Centre, National Flag Square, Bayil, AZ1003

Dates: July 12 – September 29, 2019

Exhibition opens: Tuesday through Sunday, from 12:00 – 20:00

Admission is free

For media and image inquiries please contact:

Milly Carter Hepplewhite and Lisa Hopf at Pelham Communications

Telephone: +44 2089693959

Email:milly@pelhamcommunications.com and lisa@pelhamcommunications.com