Green fashion from south america is on the run

Just 200 meters away from our Institute of Education in the Arts a new shop opened that brings beautiful clothes made of organic cotton from South America directly to Vienna. The „anzüglich green fashion shop“, Theobaldgasse 9 in the 6th district.
-> see map
Since 2008 the collections of Bawi Koszednar were produced in Peru. Therefore the designer flys to Cusco once a year in the context of a social project to realise her newest ideas together with deaf peruvian dressmakers. Bawi: „It’s really important for these women to work here because it makes them independent from their husbands and besides we have a lot of fun together.“ .
picture [] by Oliver Christl


According to the conventions of the UN International Labor Organization (ILO) the women are guaranteed social equality, solid working conditions and fair salaries.
The whole Projekt is supported by the ADA (Austrian Development Association).



Textile production and the cultivation especially of organic cotton has a long tradition in Peru, that’s why I busied myself among other things with this issue for our project.
Another reason was that I wanted you to think about working conditions in the textile production sector when you go shopping next time. Do you really have a clear conscience?

the cusco team, picture [] by "anzüglich"

text by Julia Riederer

„Paradise Pleasure Productions“ of Walter Van Beirendonck @ Song

Angelika Stephanie Böhm was at the opening.

[] hand embroidered flag by Walter van Beirendonck

When being occupied with our Vienna-Zocalo-Project I happened to realize in the exhibition of Walte Van Beirendonck how an internationally well-known fashion designer and artist deals with Mexican Wrestler Masks and textile materials.

I hoped to catch a glimpse of some Mexican Wrestler Masks at the exhibition, because of the picture of the invitation–cover, but there weren´t any masks. When I paid my visit to the inauguration of the exhibition there was simply an installation in the exhibition-room.

There were clusters of suspected display-dummies, which were covered by coloured flags. In the middle of the hall there was a big flag, spread like a carpet on the floor. Under this textile lay a male dummy, its stand-up penis of plastic, penetrating  a hole in the middle of the textile carpet. The coloured flags were printed on with expressions like  `fear´, `faith´, `sex´, `love´ and `hope´.

They showed little men, who were holding tight at their hands and very often you also could see the simplified nude portrayal of W.v.Beirendonck. Those textiles transmitted to me an indescribable happiness, but simultaneously a kind of covered criticism.

To find out the real intention of the installation more precisely I started to look for the webside of W.v.Beirendonck and succeeded in finding the following quotation:

Now this exhibition deals with the theme „freedom“:

Citation of Walter Van Beirendonck:

„The installation is a loud cry for freedom. Freedom, we have tofight for more than ever before. It is a big 'fuck you' to all thereligions, media, governments and people who are trying to influence or change the perception of the world. Censorship and limitation of expression has to be stopped. I 'used' and referred

to different impressions of cultures and religions, to create an uncanny image, which should raise questions. The 3 figures arecovered by big, hand-embroidered flags, with bright colours and patterns, which refer to my fashion-collections. The stories told on the flags refer to different subjects."

"My intention with this installation is exactly the same intention I have working on my fashion- collections: to tell a story in a way that raises a smile, but at the same time communicates deeper criticisms.“ 

http://www.waltervanbeirendonck.com/HTML/home.html?/HTML/PROJECTS/SONG/index.html&1 on the 29th of November

During the inauguration of the exhibition I happened to talk personally to W.v.Beirendonck.

He explained to me that he recently has dealt with the very topic `Mexican Wrestling Masks´ in a presentation. At a coat-stand he showed me various flags which were each symbolizing an example of his collection. Among those flags there was the-one for masks as well.

-> see Angelika Stephanies Pictures of the opening

Information about the designer and the artist:

W.v.Beirendonck lives and works in Antwerp, Belgium, and is one of the most renowned fashion designers of his native country.

The exhibtion runs from Nov. 26, 2010 to January 15, 2011.

Address: A-1020 Vienna, Praterstraße 11, A 1020 Vienna, + 43 (1) 532 28 58,

www.song.at, info@song.at

[] picture by http://www.ablogcuratedby.com/amagazine/walters-paradise-pleasure-productions-vienna/ 21.02.2011  10:45

Text by Angelika Stephanie Böhm

Super Véro Piñata by Veronika Burger

[]


-> see the whole project
-> see the performancevideo


Postcard [] Veronika Burger, Austria 2011, super1vero@gmail.com 

African Threads and Laces

The Austrian Film Archive, has set up a film programme based on  the current exhibition African Lace, Österreichische Stoffe für Nigeria of the Museum für Völkerkunde Vienna. The programme deals with identity,  aspects of perception, multiplicity of self-conception and construction of  the foreign. What means african identity after the end of colonialisation what is the role of europe in this identity.


-> programm Filmarchiv

-> Filmheft  #1,  with text from the curators Katja Wiederspahn & J Enoka Ayemba
source: 27.11.2011,19:00  http://filmarchiv.at/show_content.php?sid=413&menuaction=closeall

Return or Loan?

Austria thinks about giving the Montezuma-Krona to Mexico as a loan

and would get Maximilian's golden carriage in return. 

-> article at Ö1 (in german)

-> article at der Standard (in german)

[] Federkrone

picture [] by

http://derstandard.at/1256745564475/Wieder-Aufregung-um-Montezumas-Federkrone

27.01.2011 14:28

In- Between in Brazil

Text by Ruby Sircar "Antropophagia vs. Postkolonialismus“ in: „Entre Pindorama“, Elke aus dem Moore/ Giorgio Ronna (Hrsg.), Verlag für moderne Kunst Edition 1200, Nürnberg (2005)

In-Between in Brazil

Support for our Project

Siria Gastelum will support our press-team.

Curriculum Vitae:

Siria Gastelum has a Masters in Journalism from Carleton University  
(Canada). She also has a Communications B.A. from the Universidad de  
las Americas-Puebla (Mexico) and has studied media production in the  
University of Leeds, United Kingdom. Ms. Gastelum joined the United  
Nations in 2008 as a programme officer with the International  
Narcotics Control Board (INCB), where she coordinated the  
international launch of the INCB annual report, one of the most  
important UN reports on drugs. As a journalist, she worked most  
recently as a foreign correspondent for one of the largest TV networks  
in the US. She has covered a national election, natural disasters and  
a wide range of social issues, interviewing key decision makers such  
as Mexico’s presidents and leaders of the US Senate. In 2007, she won  
an Emmy Award of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. She has  
also written, directed and produced documentaries that have been  
screened in film festivals around the world. She has also worked as  
the editorial coordinator of a national magazine and written for  
several publications in English and Spanish. Ms. Gastelum has also  
worked as a communications designer implementing awareness campaigns  
for one of Mexico's top universities.

-> see Siria Gastelums Youtube Channel.