Nahum (artist)

Last updated

Nahum
Born1979
Mexico City
Occupation(s)Artist, musician, art director
Website http://nahum.xyz/

Nahum (born in 1979 in Mexico City, Mexico) is an artist, musician, multi-instrumentalist, performer and artistic director who lives and works in Berlin, Germany. His work combines outer space technologies, illusionism, and hypnosis to create alternative and extreme perspectives of human experience.

Contents

He is also known under the names of Nahum Mantra and Nahum Romero Zamora.

Biography

Nahum "is the new generation of young professional artists creating new imaginaries that will infect the ideas of tomorrow that will make the future of space possible and is part of a movement in countries outside the major space-faring nations that is taking ownership of the space futures". [1] Nahum is the first artist to receive the Young Space Leader Award; [2] [3] for his contributions to astronautics and space exploration.

Nahum is a fellow of the National System of Art Creators, National Endowment for Culture and Arts (FONCA) in Mexico and an associate artist at The Arts Catalyst, [4] London. Nahum was the head curator of the Shunt Lounge in London. In 2015 he curated the Transitio_MX Biennial [5] in Mexico City. He is the Founding Director of the KOSMICA Institute and chaired the Technical Activities Committee for the Cultural Use of Space (ITACCUS) [6] at the International Astronaitical Federation (IAF). [7]

Nahum has chaired the Committee on the Cultural Use of Space (ITACCUS) [8] at the International Astronautical Federation based in Paris, France. This committee "seeks to promote and facilitate the innovative utilisation of space (data, systems, applications) by organisations in the cultural sectors of society internationally, including all areas of the arts and humanities, including the fine arts, entertainment, popular culture and tourism." [9]

In 2014 Nahum was the first artist to receive the Young Space Leader Award by the International Astronautical Federation [10] for his artistic and cultural contributions to space exploration. This award recognises exceptional young professionals that have demonstrated leadership in their academic or early careers. [11] He joined the jury in 2016

His work has been exhibited internationally in venues including: Bonniers Konsthall [12] (Stockholm); Institute of Contemporary Arts [13] (UK); KSEVT (Slovenia); Polytechnic Museum [14] (Moscow); Southbank Centre (London); Rubin Center for the Visual Arts [15] (El Paso, USA); National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts [16] (Taiwan); Laboratorio Arte Alameda, [17] Mexico City (Mexico), Centro Nacional de las Artes (Mexico); Fonoteca Nacional de Mexico (Mexico).

Studies

In 2016 he graduated from the International Space University (ISU), where he completed the Space Studies Program at Technion – Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, Israel. Here he participated in the research study entitled aMARTE [18] which was commissioned by NASA. "aMARTE reviewed the most recent discoveries on the Martian environment and evaluated the different implications thereof for human Mars exploration. [19] " Since 2015 Nahum is a visiting lecturer at ISU.

Nahum earned his Master in Arts at Goldsmiths College, University of London where he graduated with a distinction. [20] During his studies in Goldsmiths, Nahum coursed the Music Pathway programme and joined the Goldsmiths Electronic Orchestra [21] ensemble. He also studied a BS in Computer science at the Tecnologico de Monterrey in Mexico City. [22]

Work

"While Nahum's investigations actively engage with the cosmos, his work also suggests a more down-to-earth and self-conscious undertone to humanity's quest to conquer the unknown: understanding ourselves and where we come from." [23] "Nahum's work is less about extraterrestrial miracles or smoke and mirrors than it is about inviting the audience to peek behind the curtain. It hinges on the validity of magical ideas and of human ability, rather than blind faith." [24]

The Contour of Presence (2018)

On 29 June 2018, Nahum launched with SpaceX an interactive artwork to the International Space Station. [25] ¨The work is about the interconnectedness of all things, on a cosmic scale but also here on Earth; the interpretation of the unknown as part of what we don't see but what is inevitably part of the totality of our existence.¨ [26] ¨This project is a collaboration between the International Space University, Space Applications Services and Nahum through a partnership with the European Space Agency.

Matters of Gravity (2015)

Nahum directed the arts and science project Matters of Gravity (La Gravedad de los Asuntos in Spanish). This project reflects on gravity by its absence and it was executed in a Zero Gravity flight mission at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre. [27]

Two years of reflection and a few seconds in zero gravity were the origins of a series of artist works that have been completed in different gravity conditions such as 2Gs and weightlessness. The resulting artworks include video, [28] performance, sculpture, drawing, and installation.

The participating artists include: Tania Candiani, Ale de la Puente, Ivan Puig, Arcángelo Constantini, Fabiola Torres-Alzaga, Gilberto Esparza, Juan José Díaz Infante, Nahum and Marcela Armas. The project included the participation of Mexican scientist Miguel Alcubierre and curators Rob La Frenais and Kerry Anne Doyle. [29]

The Matters of Gravity exhibition has been touring internationally at museums that include: Laboratorio Arte Alameda in Mexico City (2015), [30] Polytechnic Museum (VDNH), Moscow (2015), [31] Kapelica Gallery, Ljublijana, and KSEVT, Vitanje, Slovenia (2015), [32] Rubin Center of Visual Arts, University of Texas, El Paso (2015) [33] and the Museu de Arte de Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico (2016). [34]

Performance work and hypnosis

On his series of performances entitled Voyage, he applies hypnosis on the audience to create false memories about impossible journeys. ¨Nahum guides us through many visions in our own minds, as our eyes are closed. He triggers in us intense memories and visions that might be too much for some, creating the theatre in our minds to come alive.¨ [35]

In his performance Voyage: A Session for Remembering, Nahum gives to the participants a memory about walking on the Moon and experience observing the Earth from afar. [36] During his performance Voyage: Exoplanet performed at André Breton’s house in Saint-Cirque Lapopie, France, the audience traveled to an unknown planet via hypnosis. [37] In 2016 Nahum was invited to design a workshop and hypnosis based performance for the Insomnia exhibition [38] at the Bonniers Konsthall in Stockholm. In 2017 he was commissioned by the Live Art Development Agency and Performance Magazine to perform Voyage: 1979. In this performance, Nahum responded to and re-contextualise the magazine for the 21st century through video and a hypnosis performance. [39]

KOSMICA

In 2011 Nahum founded KOSMICA, an institute that encourages and promotes creative and critical discourses about the alternative, cultural and artistic uses of outer space. KOSMICA started as a series of international encounters within the spheres of art, science and outer space exploration supported by its initial partner, the Arts Catalyst in London. "Each KOSMICA session is unique: bringing together the cosmically curious and culturally quirky space community for a social mix of art–space programmes – a film screening, performance or live concert with a short presentation, talk and debate about alternative and cultural uses of space." [40]

KOSMICA has organised over 20 events and festivals and has featured over 150 space artists, cultural practitioners and space professionals in the UK, France, Belgium, Mexico, Germany and Canada. Some KOSMICA curations include topics such as Women in Space, [41] Astroculture, [42] War and Peace, [43] amongst others.

Some KOSMICA participants have included Kevin Fong, Tomás Saraceno, Ariel Guzik, Aleksandra Mir, Empress Stah, Yuri Suzuki, Honor Harger, Roger Malina, Marko Peljhan, Nelly Ben Hayoun, Katie Paterson, Agnes Meyer-Brandis, Kapwani Kiwanga, Bompas & Parr, Frederik De Wilde, Nicola Triscott, Anais Toneur, Carey Young, Christopher Riley, Dragan Živadinov, Sarah Jane Pell and Tania Candiani. "KOSMICA created an open, affable environment where the topics ranged from philosophy to the social importance of Star Trek." [44]

Music

Nahum is a composer and multi-instrumentalist. He is widely known to play the Theremin, an electronic musical instrument controlled without physical contact. Nahum has performed with Peter Theremin, the great-grandson of Leon Theremin. He earned an MA Music Pathway from Goldsmiths College, University of London where he joined the Goldsmiths Electronic Orchestra.

Orchestra Elastique

Nahum is a founding member of Orchestra Elastique, an international music improvisation collective. [45] Formed during a residency at the Shunt Vaults in April 2010, Orchestra Elastique comprises a group of performers and multi-instrumentalists. The core members of Orchestra Elastique are Joris Beets, Antoine Gilleron, Bruno Humberto, Nahum, Philippe Lenzini and Tristan Shorr. [46] Regular collaborators include Steph Patten (cello), Fiona Bevan (vocals, violin) and Larry Achiampong (bass, vocals) among others. [47]

¨Orchestra Elastique is dedicated to testing the possibilities of improvised music and live scoring with a touch of psychedelia, avant classical, drone, ambient, electro-acoustic, minimalistic, krautrock amongst other yet unknown genres. The ongoing motif of the collective is to face music as a playground, as a sensorial and enduring physical engaged performance to explore mental spaces of communion through sound. In this live exploration we take from a broad palette of instruments, styles and traditions of music and sound making. Each concert is an occasion to embark on a fresh exploration of music; a one-off experience shared between performers and audience members. The music that we create evolves in unexpected formations by multiplying and testing the possibilities that reside in live acts and making visceral sonic landscapes that in old times would have been forbidden and punished by the inquisition.¨ [48]

¨Orchestra Elastique regularly play at Café Oto, The Vortex and the Servant Jazz Quarters in London, and in April 2014 they represented the UK with jazz legend Dave Holland at the International Arts Festival FIA in San Jose, Costa Rica.¨ Their discography includes the soundtrack for a "Fallible Girl" and original albums "My Father Was A Fakir" and "London Live Sessions 1".

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

Group exhibitions

Performances

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sheila Hicks</span> American artist

Sheila Hicks is an American artist. She is known for her innovative and experimental weavings and sculptural textile art that incorporate distinctive colors, natural materials, and personal narratives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Astronautical Congress</span> Annual meeting hosted by a national member of the International Astronautical Federation

The International Astronautical Congress (IAC) is an annual meeting of the actors in the discipline of space science. It is hosted by one of the national society members of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF), with the support of the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) and the International Institute of Space Law (IISL). It consists of plenary sessions, lectures and meetings. The IAC is attended by the agency heads and senior executives of the world's space agencies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Space art</span> Visual art genre about outer space

Space art, also known as astronomical art, is a genre that visually represents the universe through various artistic styles, or sends artworks into space. The development of space art was closely linked to advancements in technology, which enabled more precise observations of the night sky. Space art may communicate ideas about space, often including an artistic interpretation of cosmological phenomena and scientific discoveries. Some space artists work directly with scientists to explore new ways to expand the arts, humanities, and cultural expression relative to space.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Per Hüttner</span> Swedish visual artist

Per Hüttner is a Swedish visual artist who lives and works in Paris. He is mostly known for his photographic work and for his interactive, changing and travelling exhibition projects. A number of monographs about his practice has been published including Per Hüttner, 2003; I am a Curator, 2004; Repetitive Time 2006, Xiao Yao You2006, Democracy and Desire 2007. The Imminent Interviews 2010 and The Quantum Police 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ann Lislegaard</span> Norwegian artist (born 1962)

Ann Lislegaard is a contemporary artist living and working in Copenhagen, Denmark and New York City, US. She is known for her 3D film animations and sound-light installations often departing from ideas found in science fiction. She finds in Science fiction an alternative approach to language, narration, gender roles and concepts of the future.

The Museo Alameda was the largest Latino museum in the United States and the first formal Smithsonian affiliate outside of Washington D.C., located in the historic Market Square in Downtown San Antonio, Texas.

Nahum B. Zenil is a Mexican artist who often uses his own self-portrait as the principal model for a cultural critical interpretation of Mexico, especially concerning homosexuality and mestization. Zenil was born in 1947 in the state of Veracruz. In 1959, he enrolled at the Escuela Nacional de Maestros in Mexico City, from which he graduated in 1964. It was during this period in which Zenil became interested in painting. He later entered the Escuela Nacional de Pintura y Escultura in Mexico City in 1968. He is also one of the founding members of the Semana Cultural Gay, which occurs yearly at the Museo Universitario del Chopo. His art is often compared to that of Frida Kahlo, in which the self becomes the principal object of their paintings letting the viewer discover the artists as individuals as well as the broader social and cultural contexts in which they lived through the medium of self-portraiture.

Haleh Jamali is an Iranian artist currently living and working in Scotland. She works with a wide range of media and techniques that include painting, photography, installation, video, and performance. She completed her Bachelors of Arts in Painting at the College of Fine Arts, University of Tehran, in 2005. In 2007, she received her MA in Art and Media Practice from the University of Westminster, London. Her works focus on the hidden layers beneath the visible by using the media of painting and installation.

Emily Sundblad is an American-based, Swedish-born painter, gallerist, and musician. She co-founded and co-directs Reena Spaulings Fine Art.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Björn Dawidsson</span> Swedish photographer

Björn Dawidsson, who publishes as Dawid, is a Swedish photographer based in Stockholm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laura Lima</span> Brazilian artist

Laura Lima is a contemporary Brazilian artist who lives and works in Rio de Janeiro. Since the 1990s, Lima has discussed in her works the matter of alive beings, among other topics. Her works can be found in the collections of institutions such as Bonniers Konsthall, Stockholm, Sweden; Inhotim Institute, Brumadinho, Brazil; MAM - Museum of Modern Art, São Paulo, Brazil; Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Zurich, Switzerland; Pinacoteca of the State of São Paulo, Brazil; Itaú Cultural, São Paulo, Brazil; Pampulha Museum of Art, Belo Horizonte, Brazil; National Museum of Fine Arts, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, USA; MASP - Museum of Art of São Paulo, Brazil, among others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sol Rezza</span> Musical artist

Sol Rezza is an Argentine composer and sound designer known for her fusion of experimental electronics with immersive audio. Specializing in surround sound and digital storytelling, she creates works that blend art, psychoacoustics, and technology, both in virtual environments and live performances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">General Organization of Remote Sensing</span> Syrian space research agency

General Organization of Remote Sensing is a Syrian space research agency established in 1986. Headquartered in Damascus, GORS is responsible for carrying out aerospace and land surveying using remote sensing techniques. In 2018, the agency assisted the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in assessing the impacts of its irrigation projects on the production of crops such as wheat and barley in Syria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luis Felipe Ortega</span>

Luis Felipe Ortega is a Mexican contemporary artist. Since 1993 he has exhibited individually and collectively both in Mexico and abroad. He was a Representative of Mexico's Pavilion in the 56th Venice Biennale in 2015 with Tania Candiani. His dedication on presenting various ideas and visions are honorable as he approached it by means of various mediums such as videos, audio, drawings, sculptures, and installations.

"The journey is very important; if there isn't, you're not in a complex relationship with the part. This journey can go from more to less or from less to more and from there make a series of equations between sculpture, image and sound. All this wants to put the piece itself in crisis."

KOSMICA is an institute that runs poetical and critical projects about outer space activities and their impact on Earth. Its central activity is a series of curated festivals worldwide with over 20 editions in countries like UK, France, Mexico and Belgium. KOSMICA also counts with other activities such as educational programmes, publishing and other curated activities. It has local offices in Berlin (Germany) and Mexico City (Mexico), with partner organisations in London (UK) and Montreal (Canada).

Thom Kubli is a Swiss-German composer and artist known for installation art and sculptures that often deploy sound as a significant element, using digital technologies and material configurations that increase the viewers' spatial perception.

Tania Candiani is a Mexican artist known for her interdisciplinary, large-scale, multimedia installations. In 2011, she was named a Guggenheim Fellow.

Ida Ekblad is a Norwegian artist who works across painting, sculpture, installation and poetry.

Gabo Camnitzer is a Swedish and U.S. artist, pedagogue, and musician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tarik Kiswanson</span>

Tarik Kiswanson, born 19 July 1986, Halmstad, is a Swedish, French, Jordanian and Palestinian visual artist. He lives and works in Paris.

References

  1. ↑ "congratulations to nahum mantra romero= space artist". Roger Malina. 7 May 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  2. ↑ "Nahum Romero | Iaf". www.iafastro.org. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  3. ↑ "Young Space Leaders Recognition Programme (YSL) | Iaf". www.iafastro.org. Archived from the original on 5 December 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  4. ↑ "Nahum Mantra | Arts Catalyst". www.artscatalyst.org. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  5. ↑ "TRANSITIO_MX 06". www.06.transitiomx.net. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  6. ↑ "Committee for the Cultural Utilisation of Space (ITACCUS) | Iaf". www.iafastro.org. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  7. ↑ "Nahum Mantra | Arts Catalyst". www.artscatalyst.org. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  8. ↑ "Committee for the Cultural Utilisation of Space (ITACCUS) | Iaf". www.iafastro.org. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  9. ↑ "Committee for the Cultural Utilisation of Space (ITACCUS) | Iaf". www.iafastro.org. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  10. ↑ "Young Space Leaders Recognition Programme (YSL) | Iaf". www.iafastro.org. Archived from the original on 5 December 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  11. ↑ "Young Space Leaders Recognition Programme (YSL) | Iaf". www.iafastro.org. Archived from the original on 5 December 2014. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  12. ↑ "Bonniers Konsthall – Insomnia öppnar!". Bonniers Konsthall (in Swedish). Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  13. ↑ "Orchestra Elastique". www.ica.art. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  14. ↑ ""Reasons of gravity" in the Polytechnic Museum at VDNH". vdnh.ru. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  15. ↑ "Rubin Center – Space Without Rockets". rubin.utep.edu. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  16. ↑ 國美館 (16 December 2008). "國美館英文網站" . Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  17. ↑ "Laboratorio Arte Alameda 2011". www.artealameda.bellasartes.gob.mx (in European Spanish). Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  18. ↑ Group, PMB. "aMARTE". isulibrary.isunet.edu. Retrieved 26 June 2017.{{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  19. ↑ "ISU Space Studies Program 2016 successfully closed in Haifa". ISU. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  20. ↑ "Nahum Mantra". Goldsmiths, University of London. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  21. ↑ "Nahum Mantra". Goldsmiths, University of London. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  22. ↑ "Visionarios: Nahum Mantra, el mago multidisciplinario que lleva el arte al espacio". Creators (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  23. ↑ "Conjuring Art Between Magic and Outer Space". Hyperallergic. 12 March 2015. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  24. ↑ "Conjuring Art Between Magic and Outer Space". Hyperallergic. 12 March 2015. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  25. ↑ ""It's official: I have an artwork in outer space"". Makery. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  26. ↑ Maldonado, Devon Van Houten. "The artworks floating above the Earth". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  27. ↑ "IAC Archive — IAC-15/E5/4/4". iafastro.directory. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  28. ↑ SPACE AFFAIRS (21 April 2015), ZeroG – The Making of La Gravedad de los Asuntos (The Matters of Gravity) , retrieved 26 June 2017
  29. ↑ "Rubin Center – Matters of Gravity". rubin.utep.edu. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  30. ↑ Sánchez, Leticia. "La Gravedad de los asuntos llega al Laboratorio Arte Alameda". Milenio (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  31. ↑ ""Reasons of gravity" in the Polytechnic Museum at VDNH". vdnh.ru. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  32. ↑ "// Habiton symposium // Matters of Gravity exhibition". noordung.blogspot.de. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  33. ↑ "Rubin Center – Matters of Gravity". rubin.utep.edu. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  34. ↑ "Museo de Zapopan presenta exhibiciones multimatemáticas de artistas mexicanos". www.notimex.gob.mx (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  35. ↑ "Experimentica, 1st Day, Chapter". Art Scene in Wales. 12 April 2018. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
  36. ↑ "Review: Nick Leassing and Nahum Matra at FACT - Artinliverpool.com". Artinliverpool.com. 13 November 2016. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  37. ↑ "Current Projects | Rob La Frenais". roblafrenais.info. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  38. ↑ "Bonniers Konsthall – Insomnia öppnar!". Bonniers Konsthall (in Swedish). Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  39. ↑ "Performance Magazine Online: Launch Event at Re-ROOTed Festival, Hull – Events – Live Art Development Agency". Live Art Development Agency. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  40. ↑ "Kosmica". Run Riot. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  41. ↑ "FACT: Kosmica Liverpool - Artinliverpool.com". Artinliverpool.com. 31 January 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  42. ↑ "KOSMICA x Astroculture | Arts Catalyst". www.artscatalyst.org. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  43. ↑ "Explora la guerra y la paz en el espacio exterior con el festival Kosmica en México". Creators (in Mexican Spanish). Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  44. ↑ Art, Royal College of Arts – Curating Contemporary. "KOSMICA x Astroculture". inspire.rca.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 8 April 2018. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  45. ↑ "London Live Sessions I, by Orchestra Elastique". Orchestra Elastique. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  46. ↑ "Orchestra Elastique". www.ica.art. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  47. ↑ "Orchestra Elastique | Mindpirates". mindpirates.org. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  48. ↑ "Orchestra Elastique ← People ← Cafe OTO". www.cafeoto.co.uk. Retrieved 3 July 2017.

See also

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.