May We Be Glad to Gather Our Bones’

Despre eveniment

‘‘May We Be Glad to Gather Our Bones’’ explores the enduring influence of Romania’s former secret police, the Securitate, through a performative installation and re-construction of historical visual narratives. Set in late-1980s Bucharest, the work follows an underground theatre group secretly developing a satirical play about the regime. As the actors transform themselves into officers and their relatives, rehearsals become increasingly unstable. What begins as a playful act of resistance slowly descends into suspicion and paranoia, as the same mechanisms they seek to parody begin to emerge within the group itself. Drawing on ‘‘Reconstituirea” (Reenactment) made by / against the state and personal testimonies surrounding the Securitate, the project examines how systems of control construct truth, shape collective memory, and continue to echo long after their collapse. Through performativity and fabrication, ‘‘May We Be Glad to Gather Our Bones’’ reimagines the (visual) archive as a site of resistance. The exhibition is made possible through Bucharest AiR (@image__language ) and Mondrian Funds

Line-up

• Luuk van Raamsdonk