VARVARA SHAVROVA “THE OPERA” Multi‐channel video projection with sound special commission for El Tanque The transformation of genders of Peking Opera inspires Varvara Shavrova in her first exhibition in Spain. An installation specifically commissioned for Espacio Cultural El Tanque, on the island of Tenerife. Dates: From 11/11/2011 to 15/01/12 Place: Espacio Cultural El Tanque Address: C/ Fuente de Santa Cruz s/n. Santa Cruz de Tenerife Schedule: Tuesday to Saturday: 12.00 to 20.00 h Sunday: 11.00 to 14.00 h. Monday: Closed Price: Free admission Varvara Shavrova is a visual artist and also curator. She was born in Russia and after training at the Moscow Poligraphic Institute; she moved to Europe to develop her work to London. After fifteen years she settled in Beijing. She currently resides between China and Dublin. Shavrova’s work is influenced by the mix of cultures where she has lived and exhibited as an artist and curator, all over the world, from Los Angeles to Berlin, via London, St. Petersburg, Shanghai and Beijing. Shavrova’s acheivements list includes numerous solo exhibitions; conceived, executed and curated visual art projects, and several awards, including the Culture Ireland Award (2008‐2009) for the exhibitions of Untouched project in Beijing and Shanghai, among others. Today Shavrova faces the challenge of exhibiting for the first time in Spain, with a project developed in the, so called, ‘Far East’. http://www.varvarashavrova.com/ Espacio Cultural El Tanque The Espacio Cultural El Tanque is an old oil depot, which served for many years as a refinery of crude oil. Once lost its initial function, the Tank has become a relic of the industrial heritage of the capital of the island of Tenerife, and a symbolic element of the current urban iconography. This Tank, which survived the last demolition of such deposits to make way for the growth of the city to the south and to the sea, is now a ‘culture container’, with its own personality and uniqueness. This space inside the Tank has fantastic spatial qualities, with its own unusual sound resonance qualities, light versatility and unique dynamics. El Espacio Cultural El Tanque celebrates 15 years of activities in 2012. http://www.amigosdeltanque.com/ Varvara Shavrova: The Opera Multi‐channel video projection with sound special commission for El Tanque "Varvara Shavrova: The Opera" is an introspective view of the artist Varvara Shavrova on the fragile world of Beijing Opera, and a revolutionary reflection on one of the most revered and valued art forms in China. Shavrova fixes her gaze on the archaic world of this ancient form of art and entertainment, and investigates the issues of sexuality and personal identity, and how these issues are manifested both in the traditional and contemporary culture, and within the framework of the modern day China. Shavrova’s attention in "The Opera" focuses on the transformation of the artists of Beijing Opera, from man to woman and from woman to man. With her personal look through the prism of artist’s lens, Shavrova follows the transformation of the gender, whilst investigating and portraying "behind the curtains" the lives of two young Peking Opera Opera, a singer of "Nan Dan"‐ a young man who plays unique roles of female characters, and a female Shanghai Opera singer, played by a young artist who sings the roles of exclusively male charcters. "The Opera" not only tells the story of a clash between traditional and contemporary forms of theater, but also focuses on a new openness to the traditional taboos associated with homosexuality in the current Chinese culture. In "The Opera" project Varvara Shavrova balances purely visual moments with personal testimonies of actors, and shows the amazing avanguard qualities of this one of the most traditional artistic disciplines. Filmed over the period of over two years, “The Opera” contains exclusive and unique material that sheds light on public and private lives of the actors of this genre, with more than 60 hours of raw footage shot in office, theaters, changing rooms and private encounters with the Peking Opera actors. Especially interested in the "space in between” and the “unknown," Shavrova focuses on the transformation of the actors, presented in three ‘acts’ by its protagonists, and transforming from the reality, through the dreamlike sequences, and leading to the rationale of the same character or role, therefore answering the viewer what is ultimately a true creation and what is the act of representation, circumscribing both concepts to the area of Peking Opera and the real world in which we live. "The Opera" consists of an installation of six projections with specially composed sound and is presented in the magnifiscent and enormous void of the empty oil storage Tank, which dates from the industrial era of the 30ies in Tenerife. In her installation, Shavrova’s points to the contrasts, where the public versus the private, stillness is placed next to motion, scale versus intimacy, and definition versus flexibility, thus addressing the question of what in the end is the true creation, and what is the act of performance, both in the world of Peking Opera, and in the real world we live in. This is a site specific installation to be exhibited in the Cultural Space of El Tanque in Tenerife, a world exclusive premier, and also is the first exhibition of the artist Varvara Shavrova in our country. The importance of the Peking Opera in Varvara Shavrova’s art. One of the main, and sometimes the only, entertainment in the old Beijing was undoubtedly the representations of the Peking Opera: the favorite of emperors and concubines in the Forbidden City. Peking Opera is one of the most respected forms of music and theater. Peking Opera is hailed by the Chinese government as "National Treasure" and "Pride of the Chinese nation". But this artform also faces challenges that are typical for many global forms of art: to be ahead of its time and to allow modernization, whilst at the same time, to maintain the tradition, in the face of the advent of the new and Westernised popular culture in modern China. The particularly attractive and unique visual and artistic elements in the Peking Opera, which the international public found magnetically poetic and mysterious, are the costumes, ‐ archaic and made using hand‐sewn silk‐ their historic and notoriously long narratives, stylized gestures, and the famous make‐up, which takes about two hours and requires at least two assistants specially trained to assist the actors. The easily recognizable sounds are typically high pitched that many Westerners find difficult to understand without a new ‘facelift’, with the possibility to present traditional Peking opera through the medium of contemporary visual art. Today, Peking Opera is in danger of being extinguished in the Chinese entertainment industry, as the young audiences in China find listening to this beautiful and mysterious art form a challenge. Therefore introduction of modern Western tradition to Peking opera is essential for its preservation and future growth that can potetnially open a new era for this ancient art form, and re‐introduce Peking opera to larger international and Chinese audiences.