ARTLab invites you to a dance performance event in Andrea Peña's installation, States of Transmutation.  

The body is core to Andrea’s work. The ARTLab will be a dance performance activation of the exhibition space by dance duo slowdanger. 

The performance is FREE with museum admission.

The performance will be 40 minutes long.

About slowdanger

Taylor knight and anna thompson are co-founding artistic directors of slowdanger, a multidisciplinary performance entity utilizing movement, found material, integrative technology, electronic instrumentation, and vocalization to produce performance work since 2013. Based out of Pittsburgh, PA slowdanger synergizes mediums, utilizing process based practice to delve into circular life patterning including effort, transformation, and death. They have been featured in/by Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch” (2018), MoMA, The Kennedy Center, The Warhol Museum, Usine C, and more. They were 2022 awardees of the NPN Creation Fund and NEFA/National Dance Project to create their work, SUPERCELL which premiered in fall 2023 at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center and Kelly Strayhorn Theater.

ARTLab

ARTLab is a drop-in program that is free or ticketed low-cost with museum admission. It occurs every Saturday from 1-4 PM. The program engages visitors of all ages and experience levels in hands-on art activities co-created with exhibiting artists. 

About the Artist

Peña, a hybrid Latinx artist born in Bogotá, Colombia and residing in the territory of Tiohtiá:ke, Montreal, is known for her dynamic blend of choreography and industrial design. Her work explores the interplay between the human body and the constructed environment. At the heart of Peña’s new exhibition is a deep investigation into the world of hybridity, challenging and redefining our understanding of movement, material, and design. 

About the Exhibition

Upon entering States of Transmutation, visitors will be greeted with curtains reminiscent of both butcher shops and laboratories, offering a surreal gateway into Peña's universe. The exhibit space reveals a cacophony of mutations - from the stark imagery of a steel table bent by a crane to the more delicate harmony of a self-rocking chair, every piece invokes profound contemplation on body, gender, and our human experience.

A central point of Peña's installation is an enigmatic "choreographic machine." Engineered with two slowly moving mechanical arms, this piece is not designed for perfection or flawless replication. Instead, it explores the concept of 'glitch' as an intentional error, questioning our perceptions of the body through its imperfections. Throughout the year long exhibition, visitors will witness a massive silicon piece manipulated by the machine, offering an abstract stand in for the human form and sparking dialogue between the human body and this mechanical presence. Occasionally the machine will be activated by live performers, becoming an interactive spectacle, moving bodies in real-time and highlighting the tension between human agency and technological constraints. The choreographic machine invites viewers to consider the delicate dance between human and technology, emphasizing Peña's exploration of rhythm, temporality, and the harmonious symphonies that emerge from their convergence.

Audio is integral to Peña's installation. In collaboration with composer Debbie Doe, visitors will experience sounds that sit at the intersection of body and machine – visceral, fleshy reverberations that echo through the space.