Mugur Grosu: Dead poets high society / Cerul poeților dispăruți

eXplore festival #14 – Bucharest International Contemporary Dance and Performance Festival

▪️ 28.09.2019 // WASP Working Art Space and Production, Bucharest
19:30 – 21:30
Mugur Grosu: Dead poets high society
Art installation, performance, poemusic

Dead poets high society represents a kinetic installation which is suspended, made of about 150 recycled, cut and bent PET packages so as to form the stylized image of transparent birds / books. Transparent sticker sheets are glued on these, which are printed with the texts of 22 recently disappeared contemporary poets, in the last quarter of the century – some very beloved / known poets, others emerging / subversive / little known.

The installation is complemented by a performance with live music, improvisations and recitative texts, written by the 22 authors. Mugur has previously staged similar projects (but with his own texts) at various editions of the Bucharest International Poetry Festival or the Dobrojazz festival. In November 2019, he was invited to present a performance of poetry, music & video art at the opening of the fEastTheatre festival in London.

Mugur Grosu brings together poetry, visual arts and music in a syncretic formula, through art installations and performances, beyond clichés. Writer and artist, born in Constanta and living in Bucharest, he learned to swim and play the piano before writing and reading: at the age of 5, he had his first piano lessons and jazz auditions at Harry Tavitian’s club, the famous Romanian jazzman who later became his mentor and friend.

He published 6 books of poetry and experimental literature and has been featured in 20 anthologies, out of which 3 international. Since 1993, he has had exhibitions in various art-galleries, museums or public spaces.

In the last years he returned to his first passion, as a performer in experimental projects, blending music and spoken word, initially with his own band Upanishadows (http://upanishadows.independent.ro), then in various collaborative and solo projects.

The project was developed within Life Long Burning – Towards A Sustainable Eco-System for Contemporary Dance in Europe residency program, which sustains the contemporary dance and performance scene in Europe.

The multiannual programme is coordinated and implemented by a network of 11 European organizations, associations, companies and production houses: 4Culture (RO), danceWEB (AT), ICI-Center Chorégraphique National De Montpellier (FR), Brain Store Project (BG), NDA Slovenia (SI), Stuk (BE), Tala Dance Center (HR), Uferstudios (DE), Veem House for Performance (NL), Workshop Foundation (HU) and MDT Stockholm (SE).

Life Long Burning – Towards A Sustainable Eco-System for Contemporary Dance is a multi-annual project co-financed by The European Union – Creative Europe Programme.

eXplore festival #14

Producers: 4Culture Association and WASP Studios
Cultural project co-financed by the National Cultural Fund Administration (AFCN)

The project does not necessarily represent the position of AFCN.
AFCN is not responsible for the content of the project or the way the project results can be used. This is entirely the responsibility of the beneficiary of the funding.

Partners: Balassi Institute – The Hungarian Institute in Bucharest, Brancovenesti Palaces Cultural Center, Geological Institute of Romania – National Museum of Geology, Craiova Art Museum

Media partners: Radio Romania Cultural, Modernism, Zeppelin, ARTA Magazine, Designist, Feeder, IQads, Romania Pozitiva