25 Apr 2011

ANARCH-ETIQUETTE: the etiquette of anarchy: preserving the writing on the wall

PLATTEFORUM & MCA DENVER PRESENT
ANARCH-ETIQUETTE: the etiquette of anarchy: preserving the writing on the wall

DENVER, April 15, 2011 — The Museum of Contemporary Art Denver (MCA Denver) and PlatteForum are proud to announce the second annual Confluence Project, a shared artist in residence program featuring Creative Resident, Daniele Pario Perra. Perra showcases his seven-week residency at PlatteForum with an installation in the Fox Family Idea Box at MCA Denver titled ANARCH-ETIQUETTE: the etiquette of anarchy: preserving the writing on the wall. Throughout his residency, Perra leads intensive workshops with students from ArtLab and TeCo, where they learn about how wall writings and graffiti are forms of spontaneous communication in urban culture. The exhibition opens at MCA Denver on Friday, May 6, 2011. A public reception will be held on the same day at MCA Denver from 6-10PM. Teens and students are encouraged to attend this opening. Admission is a dime for everyone.

The project begins with a search of Denver's urban environment for graffiti and writings that communicate the integral, sociological aspects of the city's various cultural and ethnic influences. Then, Perra and the students use a fresco removal process to extract the selected writings from the original structure.The graffiti is coated with a fresco-like material, left to sit for several days, until every detail is absorbed and can be stripped from the wall. The writings are transferred onto large canvases through a gluing technique. A collection of the final project at MCA Denver aims to create a forum for open discussion where visitors can experience and participate in the spontaneous communication and ideas within urban communities. ANARCH-ETIQUETTE: the etiquette of anarchy: preserving the writing on the wall is not about the uniqueness of a single statement on a wall but the collection of various writings, which reveal an understanding of the DNA of a city or area itself. Throughout the process, students at the University of Denver's Department of Anthropology acted as ethnographers in the process. The project marks the first time Perra has worked in the United States on ANARCH-ETIQUETTE: the etiquette of anarchy: preserving the writing on the wall, which has previously been done throughout Europe.



ABOUT THE ARTIST

Daniele Pario Perra is an Italian artist based in Bologna, Italy. His work ranges across many different disciplines: art, design, sociology, anthropology, architecture and geopolitics. His work explores spontaneous creativity, cultural trends and patterns of urban development as well as the constant relationship between material culture and symbolic heritage. In 2001, he started the Low-Cost Design database, published in 2010, which contains more than 7000 photographs of the transformations of objects and public spaces in Europe and around the Mediterranean. He is also interested in spontaneous communication that takes place in various European cities. Using the 'Fresco Removals' process, Perra organizes workshops on how to preserve notable examples of wall writings and graffiti before their removal by private and public agencies.


ABOUT CONFLUENCE PROJECT

Confluence Project is a shared Artist-in-Residence program between PlatteForum and MCA Denver. Confluence Project artists create new work and lead workshops with teens from PlatteForum's ArtLab and MCA Denver's Teen Council. The artist and students' works from the workshops are later exhibited in the Fox Family Idea Box at MCA Denver.

Confluence Project is supported by the Fox Family, Daniel Lincoln & Mark Watts, JP Morgan Chase and the National Endowment for the Arts.

ABOUT TEEN COUNCIL

Teen Council (TeCo) is a selected group of energetic and creative high school students that intern at the MCA Denver to create programming and events for teens. TeCos also interact with leading artists in a collaborative environment, creating work and gaining unparalleled insight about art; and participate in MCA Denver's Docent Program to understand and engage in a dialog about the exhibitions. The goal of TeCo is to unite, involve, and captivate young people with contemporary art at MCA Denver.

Teen Council is sponsored in part by the Fox Family and Daniel Lincoln & Mark Watts.


ABOUT ARTLAB AT PLATTEFORUM

The ArtLab program provides an integrated, substantive out-of-school arts opportunity for at-risk youth in our community. It is a yearlong intensive youth development and training program, utilizing the arts, mentorship and learning to reach underserved Denver area youth aged 14 – 19 years. The goal of the program for youth is to connect with their peers, school, and community in a way that opens doors of opportunity for their future: graduation, higher education, employment, in order for them to make a successful transition into adulthood. This innovative long-term program utilizes the arts, mentorship and learning to encourage the development of academic, personal and workforce skills. ArtLab youth learn from Creative Residents and participate in workshops directed by visiting artists. They work with Learning Lab groups as helpers and mentors in an atmosphere that fosters creativity, diversity, competence, asset development, trust and teamwork. Various community groups recommend youth after personal interviews. The program is funded in part by Colorado Creative Industries, National Endowment for the Arts, Riverfront Park Community Foundation and the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District.


ABOUT MCA DENVER

MCA Denver is a non-collecting institution acting as an incubator for art and ideas, artistic
exchange, and dialog. As Denver's first institution devoted entirely to contemporary art, MCA Denver inaugurated its new environmentally sustainable facility, designed by David Adjaye, on October 28, 2007. The 27,000 square foot space, located in the Lower Downtown area, received the distinction of Gold level Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). MCA Denver marks David Adjaye's first public building in the U.S. as well as his first contemporary art museum worldwide. In 2009, MCA Denver merged with The Lab at Belmar.

MCA Denver presents exhibitions of artworks by regional, national, and international artists.


MUSEUM LOCATION, HOURS AND TICKET PRICES

MCA Denver is located at 1485 Delgany on the corner of 15th Street and Delgany, Denver,
CO. The telephone number is 303 298 7554. Museum hours are Tuesday through Thursday 10AM to 6PM, Friday 10AM to 10PM and Saturday and Sunday 10AM to 6PM. The Museum is closed on Monday. General admission to the Museum is $10, senior and student tickets are $5. MCA Denver offers $1 off admission to visitors who come to the Museum via public transportation. Children under the age of 6 are admitted free.


MCA DENVER ANNUAL SUPPORT

MCA Denver receives annual support for its exhibitions and programs from members of the Director's Vision Society, as well as the following generous institutional supporters at the $5,000 level and above: 1900 16th Street at the Millennium Bridge; 5280 Denver's Magazine; Arete Foundation; Bonfils-Stanton Foundation; Canwest; Caulkins Family Foundation; Colorado Creative Industries; The Denver Foundation; Denver Office of Cultural Affairs; Dickler Family Foundation; Ellen Bruss Design; Gay & Lesbian Fund for Colorado; HBB Foundation; JFM Foundation; Kennedy Associates Real Estate Counsel, LP; KEW Realty; KeyBank; Komorebi, LLC; KPMG; Liberty Global, Inc; Liberty Media Co.; MetLife Foundation; National Endowment for the Arts; NSO Press; the perfect petal; The Richard W. Wright & Ruth Drinkwater Wright Charity; Riverfront Park Community Foundation; Room & Board; Sage Hospitality Resources; Temple Hoyne Buell Foundation; Three Tomatoes Catering; US Bank; Wells Fargo; The Western States Art Federation and Xcel Energy Foundation.

Additionally, MCA Denver thanks the citizens of the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District for their support.


ABOUT PLATTEFORUM

Through the creative process, PlatteForum gives hope and direction to underserved youth who collaborate with master artists from around the world. This experience transforms the lives of the youth, the artists and the community.

Every good life is built on a handful of epiphanies—moments of deep insight when the light comes on and you see what is possible for you. PlatteForum teams contemporary artists with small groups of young people from underserved urban neighborhoods to plan, produce and exhibit a collaborative body of work. PlatteForum was created to answer the critical need for learning through the arts for Denver's underserved and at-risk youth. In doing so, PlatteForum gives kids a chance to work side by side with master artists who model the outlook and skills required to build a productive and satisfying life. These creative residencies offer exciting opportunities for working artists to create new work and provide a learning-by-doing experience for young people that can open up a new sense of what is possible.


PLATTEFORUM LOCATION AND TOURS

PlatteForum is located at 1610 Little Raven St., Suite 135 in Riverfront Park, Denver, CO.

Call 303 893 0791 to schedule a free tour.