Inspired by the history of Alchemy, found in both Eastern and Western cultures, we sought out a symbolic name that would embody our goals in providing emerging artists with a platform, space and opportunity to “experiment” with new forms of art making. Alchemy itself can be simply defined as a process of transforming something common into something special, and TRIA PRIMA (the three primes of Alchemy) were perfect in representing our concept, as well as to build our mission statement from.
TRIA PRIMA worked site specific in traditional hutong spaces in Beijing, China. Our intention was to intervene with these historical landscapes in an attempt to transform them temporarily into a contemporary creative context, linking the past to the present.
INSIDE / OUT Performance Installation
《向内向外》表演装置
November 23rd, 2014
#120 YangMeiZhu Hutong, Dashilar, Beijing, China
As the first installment curated by TRIA PRIMA, INSIDE/OUT was a one-afternoon collaborative performance that worked within one of the existing derelict hutong spaces in the historic Dashilar district situated in West Beijing. By working in this former multi-family living space, we were reminiscing on early Chinese contemporary art history where artists had exhibited in their own homes.
TRIA PRIMA collaborated with a group of practitioners from different fields – two contemporary dance choreographers, performers, musicians, as well as installation and performance artists – who each worked separately, but coherently, flowing between the individual and compartmentalized rooms of the former living space of #120 Yangmeizhu Hutong.
As the title INSIDE/OUT might suggest, this event highlighted, in particular, the voyeuristic experience taken on by the audience themselves while exploring the space, to contemplate on the rhythm of these former communal living environments and the dualities of our lives in relationship to the past/present, internal/external, permanent/temporary, homogenous/multicultural, new/old, East/West and other such dichotomies. By mediating these common dualities found in life, this performance provided an absurd but thoughtful portrait of different individuals, cultures and times.
INSIDE/OUT also reflected and reacted on the spatial environment itself, by allowing the audience to move freely and curiously throughout the space simultaneously with the performers, artists and musicians during the performance, exploring room by room as they re-imaged this historical space into a contemporary context in real time. Thus, the performance blurred the lines between performers and participants, which was especially vital to recreating, reinventing and therein, reviving this space into something new entirely.
