Flutgraben Performances

laut jerebu (the sea where land is out of sight)

This sharing takes the shape of a conversation between jee chan, Jelena Golubović and Bilawa Ade Respati. Drawing upon our respective lived experiences across Southeast Asia and Southeast Europe, we discuss issues surrounding language, mapping, nationhood and diaspora in relation to the construction of identity. The conversation will be interspersed with moments of song from the Central Javanese gamelan tradition—the context in which the three of us met, as well as a point of reference as we flow through the afternoon. This event marks the end of jee chan’s research residency hosted at Flutgraben Performances (July/August 2023).

The event is free of charge, and requires registration. There is a capacity of 30 guests. Please send an email to flutgrabenperformances@gmail.com to confirm your attendance on a first come, first served basis.

5 August 2023
14 – 16h
Public in Private studio, Flutgraben e.V. Am Flutgraben 3
12435 Berlin

Pip Studio is located at the 1st floor of Flutgraben e.V. building.
The building isn’t accessible to wheelchairs.

jee chan is an artist and choreographer whose practice often examines the potential of the displaced body, driven by their research concerning ancestral epistemologies and oral histories. As a leitmotif in their work, the sea has evoked themes of migration, memory, grief and transformation to address deep historical violence, particularly through the lens of island Southeast Asia. www.zuntukyun.com

jelena golubović’s interests, creative pursuits and scholarly endeavours stretch over music, the visual arts and conceptual art: interplays between language, societies, and visual thinking—communication of the unspeakable through the absence of verbal expression—transregional and border thinking.

Bilawa Ade Respati is a musician based in Berlin, performing on and writing for the Javanese Gamelan and the guitar. His current artistic interest is in the dialectic between tradition and innovation, where he experiments with the amalgam of algorithmic music composition and the idiom of gamelan music. https://sastraswara.site/

Special thanks to Ana Bibiscus, Toni Flügel, stefan pente, Thow Xin Wei, Lindhu Raras, and the team of Flutgraben Performance Residencies—Tiphaine Carrère Loquet, Clément Layes, Moritz Majce and Sandra Man. The residency program is funded by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Europe. The event is kindly supported by the Rumah Budaya Indonesia (House of Indonesian Cultures), a project of the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Berlin

We are happy to announce Emil Ertl as our next resident artist in 2023.

Emil Ertl is a dancer and choreographer based in Berlin. For their time at Flutgraben Performances Residencies, they will collaborate with performance artist Onur Agbaba. Serpentine serpentine never a straight line serpentine serpentine serpentine never a straight line serpentine. Along the lines of Peaches’ song Serpentine, Ertl and Agbaba investigate the notion of creases, wrinkles and folds.
The German word for straightening is »glätten«. Straightened things appear to function, to be correct, to be clean. Wrinkled or crumpled stuff on the other hand commonly is thought of as messy, wild or inappropriate. In this research, Ertl and Agbaba wish to dissect this dichotomy and examine the potential of the act of crumpling. If the act of straightening stands for heteronormativity, can the act of crumpling be a queer act of resistance? How can we use choreography as a tool to research the act of straightening things out?

We are happy to announce jee chan as our next resident artist in July/August 2023.

jee is an artist and choreographer whose works are characterised by investigations into memory, displacement and grief, and often question the potential of the displaced body. Their current dance practice is driven by their research concerning ancestral epistemologies and oral histories. As a leitmotif in jee’s work, the sea has evoked themes of conquest, migration, transformation and healing to address deep historical violence, particularly through the lens of island Southeast Asia. jee will use the residency to develop choreographic scores for a new work, based upon experimental breath techniques which emerge from the relationship between the breath and the cyclical movement of the ocean’s tides. They are interested in situating this practice in dialogue with collaborators who hold immigrant histories, both in one-to-one and collective formats.

We wish jee a wonderful and inspiring time during their residency!

We are happy to announce Laurie Young as our next resident artist in May/June 2023 (from Open Call #3 – 2023 // please check our ongoing Open Call #4 till 2nd June).

Laurie is a Berlin-based dance artist who focuses on the embodiment of unauthorised histories and their representation and how relationships are choreographed between human and non human in the theater, museum and city. She will base the residency on a choreographic and therapeutic search around trembling, navigating between Trauma Release Exercises (TRE) and the concept of trembling thinking of Édouard Glissant. She will research haptic sounds as vibratory practice by creating installation structures. She also wants to bridge relationships with organisations aiming to create a safer space of empowerment. During her residency she will offer TRE sessions and engage in experimental collaborations with an interdisciplinary focus on trembling.

We wish Laurie a vibrant and inspiring time during her residency!

Flutgraben Performances Residencies 2023

Open Call #4 “the space between two bodies of water”¹

This call is created in thought of those who live in the in-between space. It is for those who dwell in liminalities – in the crack between the worlds, as the queer-feminist writer Gloria E. Anzaldua used to write². Those who are constantly moving back and forth, who are always in transition. This call is for performers and dancers who have developed practices, forms or ways to negotiate and explore this state of living at the intersections between different identities and worlds. And who are going in their work and practice beyond simplistic notions of exclusionary boundaries and binaries.

We are happy to announce the fourth open call of our artist-in-residence program Flutgraben Performances Residencies. FPR is open to Berlin-based choreographers and artists from the fields of choreography, performance and contemporary dance.

Who we are

Flutgraben Performances Residencies is an independent project. It started in 2020 and is currently run by artists Clément Layes, Moritz Majce, and Sandra Man together with producer and administrator Tiphaine Carrère-Loquet. With Flutgraben Performances Residencies we are extending and complementing our vision of an artist-run initiative for experiments and exchange. Flutgraben Performances Residencies is funded by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Europe.

About Flutgraben Performances Residencies

Since the beginning of the project we were interested in challenging and finding new ways of selecting and inviting artists to our residency program. This year there will be four residencies, three of which will be chosen by former resident artists and one by a member of the FPR team. Each of these jurying artists was invited to find their own procedure of choosing one next resident artist and is presenting their choice in a common meeting with the FPR team.

As we are also interested in more sustainable forms of care and collaboration, e. g. in redefining the relation of juror and artist, we asked our jurors to accompany their chosen artists during the residency period.

Who we address with this call

This call for residency is proposed by Ana Bisbicus, architect, researcher and performer and also former residency participant in FPR 2022. In their ongoing research “Tracing Nepantla” they work with the writings of Gloria E. Anzaldua and her depictions of the in-between space and the concept Nepantla. “Nepantla” is an indigenous Nahuatl word and means “to stand in the middle“. Their work seeks to identify the tangible and visible manifestations of Nepantla by mapping those spaces and places from their own body and life experience as a queer migrant of color living in Berlin.

The applicant should have a background in dance/performance/choreography and be based in Berlin.

We would like to encourage and support the resident artist to open up their residency and sharing their practice with guests, previous FPR resident artists, and the FPR team.

Duration and period of the residency

In this call we offer a residency from 10 July to 07 August 2023 (four weeks studio time) and 1 week of post-production time.

Fees

No application fees.

What we offer

A grant of €2.500 is offered for the residency.

The residency includes 4 weeks access to a 80m2 studio in Flutgraben artists house (Kreuzberg-Treptow) plus basic technical support. There is WiFi in the studio and use of a common kitchen.

Application deadline

2nd June 2023

Application

Application language can be English/German/Spanish.

What to send

Please send a short text (around 250 words max.) in which you describe your practice and what you would like to do in the frame of your FPR residency. Please be specific on what you want to do artistically in response to the theme of the call. We are interested in getting a feeling of your artistic approach of working.

• Some information about your artistic work (e.g. website, video and textual documentations – please check your links and passwords.) and CV

to this email address: residency@flutgrabenperformances.org

If you have questions please use this email address for contacting us.

Please be aware that this call is only for Berlin-based artists.

Information about the venue

With the Flutgraben Performances Residencies project we are one species among others, adding to the diversity of the Flutgraben artists house biotope. The Flutgraben artists house is administered by Flutgraben e.V. More information about the building can be found here: www.flutgraben.org

Accessibility

We are limited in inviting people with physical disabilities as the building is not yet equipped for mobility handicaps. The studio for this residency is located on the first floor of the building and is only accessible via a staircase. An elevator is under construction but will not be ready for the time of the residency.

1 Anzaldúa, Gloria. Borderlands / La Frontera: The New Mestiza. Aunt Lute Books 1987, p. 43.

2 Anzaldúa, Gloria: Light in the Dark/Luz en lo Oscuro: Rewriting Identity, Spirituality, Reality (Latin America Otherwise: Languages, Empires, Nations), Illustrated, Durham and London, England: Duke University Press, 2015, p. 71.

We are happy to announce Mica as our next resident artist in 2023.

Mica is a Berlin-based artist from Brazil dealing with Hip Hop dance, fashion and street culture from the perspective of being a Black woman. As Hip Hop culture is predominantly male, Mica perceives an absence of Black women also in the Berlin scene. The artist realises the urgency of creating a space of exchange to map, value and encourage other Black women to know and take possession of Hip Hop culture, through studies focused on the history of Hip Hop itself, including its specific Latin-American manifestation. During her residency Mica is going to celebrate a space of exchange allowing different experiences for various female Black artists in the city with dance meetings, open practices, workshops for children and theoretical meetings. By bringing together women of different ages, a magical and valuable exchange of knowledge, experiences and stories can take place. The older generation will pass on their experiences and the legacy of Hip Hop, while the younger generation bring their own creative energy and perspectives. This dialogue will allow to appreciate not only the development of Hip Hop over time, but also the experience of being a Black female artist in Berlin and around the world, with all the plurality and uniqueness of each life.

We wish Mica a great time full of exchange during her residency!

We are happy to announce the third open call of our artist-in-residence program Flutgraben Performances Residencies. FPR is open to Berlin-based choreographers and artists from the fields of choreography, performance art and contemporary dance.

Who we are

Flutgraben Performances Residencies is an independent project. It started in 2020 and is currently run by artists Clément Layes, Moritz Majce, and Sandra Man together with producer and administrator Tiphaine Carrère-Loquet. With Flutgraben Performances Residencies we are extending and complementing our vision of an artist-run initiative for experiments and exchange. Flutgraben Performances Residencies is funded by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Europe.

About Flutgraben Performances Residencies

Since the beginning of the project we were interested in challenging and finding new ways of selecting and inviting artists to our residency program. This year there will be four residencies, three of which will be chosen by former resident artists and one by a member of the FPR team. Each of these jurying artists was invited to find their own procedure of choosing one next resident artist and is presenting their choice in a common meeting with the FPR team.

As we are also interested in more sustainable forms of care and collaboration, e. g. in redefining the relation of juror and artist, we asked our jurors to accompany their chosen artists during the residency period.

Who we address with this call

This call for residency is proposed by Clément Layes, artist, co-founder and member of the FPR team: “A great number of performers and dance artists in Berlin are also committed to therapeutic practices. With this residency I would like to support the work between art and therapeutics/ somatics with a particular focus on group therapeutics, collective body practices, and somatic activism. Feel invited to share your ideas for creating a space for experimentation, a brave space, safer space, healing space … “

The applicant should have a background in dance/performance/choreography and therapeutics, and be based in Berlin.

We would like to encourage and support the resident artist to open up their residency and sharing their practice with guests, previous FPR resident artists, and the FPR team.

Duration and period of the residency

In this call we offer a residency from 15 May to 11 June 2023 (four weeks studio time) plus one week for post-production.

Fees

No application fees.

What we offer

A grant of €2.500 is offered for the residency.

The residency includes 4 weeks access to a 80m2 studio in Flutgraben artists house (Kreuzberg-Treptow) plus basic technical support. There is WiFi in the studio and use of a common kitchen.

Application deadline

12 April 2023.

Application

Application language is English.

What to send

• Please send a short text (about half a page) in which you describe your practice and what you would like to do in the frame of your FPR residency. Please be specific on what you want to do artistically. We are interested in getting a feeling of your artistic approach of working.

• Some information about your artistic work (e.g. website, video and textual documentations – please check your links and passwords.) and CV

to this email address: residency@flutgrabenperformances.org

If you have questions please use this email address for contacting us.

Please be aware that this call is only for Berlin-based artists.

Information about the venue

With the Flutgraben Performances Residencies project we are one species among others, adding to the diversity of the Flutgraben artists house biotope. The Flutgraben artists house is administered by Flutgraben e.V. More information about the building can be found here: www.flutgraben.org

Accessibility

We are limited in inviting people with physical disabilities as the building is not yet equipped for mobility handicaps. The studio for this residency is located on the first floor of the building and is only accessible via a staircase. An elevator is under construction but will not be ready for the time of the residency.

In the frame of Flutgraben Performances we encountered many artists, who while participating in our events expressed a strong desire to spend more time working and researching at Flutgraben. Finally this dream came true and we are very happy to announce that we now have the opportunity to offer artistic residencies to Berlin-based artists, which will allow them to work in the studio for a longer time and without financial concerns.

Flutgraben Performances Residencies was initiated in 2020 by Clément Layes, Jasna Layes-Vinovrski, Moritz Majce and Sandra Man. Since early 2021 it is run by Clément Layes, Moritz Majce and Sandra Man. Production and organisation management is done by Tiphaine Carrère Loquet.

The following texts are written by artists who took the time to research with us changing ways to invite new resident artists. Each artist was asked to find their own approach to the process of selection, discussing their criteria of deciding with us and their colleagues.

We want to thank all the participants for their effort in finding with us new ways to choose, host, accompany artists in residencies that try to care about and pay attention to the diversity and the complexity of the Berlin dance scene.

We are happy to announce Zrinka Užbinecs and Kasia Kania as our next resident artists in 2023.

Zrinka Užbinec, in collaboration with Kasia Kania, will take time to research on choreographic clashes between cuteness and violence, thinking of choreography as an unstable state that can observe and produce ambiguous affections. By developing choreographies and practices that question violent acts in a performative way, this research will reflect discursively, critically and practically on (miss)representation of violent acts in performance and self-defence practices. With this research, Zrinka and Kasia will test choreographies that function as a counterpart to violence: a sensual activity, a caring force seizing agency and acute passivity – sometimes.

We wish Zrinka and Kasia a rich and inspiring time during their residency!

We are pleased to announce Guilherme Morais as our next resident artist in 2022.

Guilherme Morais is a Brazilian choreographer, performer and pedagogue. His research focuses on both dance and neuroscience; the mind and the nervous system. He’s particularly interested in how the unconscious and conscious are activated through movement and specific motor coordinations. In Berlin he contributes to decolonial, anti-racist and queer discourse in collaboration with collectives like Grupo Oito and Santix Schwarz. During the residency at FPR, he will continue his research on monsters, based on the phrase,  „I claim my right to be a monster“ by „trans sudaca artist“, Susy Shock. 

We wish Guilherme an intense and productive time during his residency!