Without meeting Harmen de Hoop and Biancoshock will give eachother assignments to make an artwork in the city where they currently are.
Every work will be a reaction to the one made before by the other artist. The documentation of their interventions and actions will be shown here.
26.08.2022 BIANCOSHOCK GAVE HARMEN DE HOOP AN ASSIGNMENT: MAKE A WORK ABOUT A SMALL TOWN.
HARMEN DE HOOP: FUTURE MEMORIES - QUEDLINBURG, 2022
Unlike other German cities, Quedlinburg survived World War II unscathed. When it was part of Communist East Germany (GDR) the old centre fell into disrepair. The GDR government had neither the money nor the building materials for a large-scale renovation. There were plans for a massive demolition. Only through the resistance of the citizens in autumn 1989 could the demolition of the old town of Quedlinburg be prevented. After the German reunification 700 half-timbered houses were renovated. Today, Quedlinburg is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a major tourist attraction. Visitor numbers have been rising so much that the citizens of Quedlinburg now complain about ‘overtourism’.
29.07.2022 HARMEN DE HOOP GAVE BIANCOSHOCK AN ASSIGNMENT: MAKE A WORK ABOUT A FORM OF DISCRIMINATION.
BIANCOSHOCK: THAT VILLAGE - COLOBRARO, 2022
Colobraro, a small village in southern Italy, is known ad the "village without name": its name is considered bringer of bad luck and in neighboring villages Colobraro is usually mentioned as "that village".
This unnameability is linked to an anecdote dating back to the 1940. During a meeting of local administrators, the mayor of Colobraro, at the end of his speech, should say: "If I don't tell the truth, may this chandelier fall". According to reports, the chandelier really fell causing some victims and injuries. The major said that the episode was a slander by public officials, who then spread the word throughout the other towns to discredit the village. A colobrarese who went to the neighboring towns was facilitated and treated with respect to avoid misfortunes.
"Respecting" the superstition still existing in those places, Biancoshock has reproduced and enlarged one of the most typical local superistions: a broken pack of salt. In the Italian tradition, the salt that falls on the ground brings bad luck and you must immediately take 3 handfuls of salt and throw them behind your left shoulder, to defeat the curse. The installation survived less than an hour before being removed by the citizens. Modern times, ancient traditions.
24.06.2022 BIANCOSHOCK GAVE HARMEN DE HOOP AN ASSIGNMENT: MAKE A WORK ABOUT BROADCASTING.
HARMEN DE HOOP: BROADCAST YOUR OPINION - BASEL, 2022
Freedom of expression is the foundation of a democratic society. Most of the time we make up our mind based on our own experiences, our prior beliefs and values. It is always good to try to see things from a different point of view. By broadcasting your opinion you enable others to test their ideas, and perhaps modify them. Not all people become hostile when they are confronted with someone else's opinion.
20.04.2022 HARMEN DE HOOP GAVE BIANCOSHOCK AN ASSIGNMENT: MAKE A WORK WITH PACKAGING MATERIAL.
BIANCOSHOCK: NONSENSE - PAVIA, 2022
How an artist makes a production about how television makes a production.
09.03.2022 BIANCOSHOCK GAVE HARMEN DE HOOP AN ASSIGNMENT: SHIP SOMETHING TO SOMEONE.
HARMEN DE HOOP: AFRICAN SCULPTURES, 2022
Many African states have been fighting for more than a century for the return of their artifacts stolen during colonial times. Experts estimate that 80-90% of Africa's cultural heritage can be found in European museums, or rather in their storage. Some museums refuse to give back the looted artworks, stating that it is irresponsible to return artworks to a place without proper storage facilities, security, and climate control. That argument is not valid anymore, new art museums are built everywhere in Africa. That’s why Harmen de Hoop decided to send the African sculptures in his collection to a museum in Dakar, not knowing whether these sculptures are valuable museum pieces, or worthless souvenirs made for tourists.
20.02.2022 HARMEN DE HOOP GAVE BIANCOSHOCK AN ASSIGNMENT: MAKE A WORK ABOUT CONSUMER PRODUCTS.
BIANCOSHOCK: PRIME - MILAN, 2022
The need for lightness feeds the unsustainable heaviness of consumerism.
28.01.2022 BIANCOSHOCK GAVE HARMEN DE HOOP AN ASSIGNMENT: MAKE A WORK ABOUT ADVERTISING.
HARMEN DE HOOP: STREET ART - BIEL, 2022
What do we want? What do we need? What do we value more: consumer products or art?
20.12.2021 HARMEN DE HOOP GAVE BIANCOSHOCK AN ASSIGNMENT: MAKE A WORK USING FLYERS.
BIANCOSHOCK: MAGIC MOVIE - MUGGIO, 2022
The Magic Movie Park in Muggiò was a gigantic multiplex and the second largest "Made in China" bazaar in Europe (15 cinema rooms and 170 shops). It was closed only one year after its opening, when it emerged that the cinema was owned by the Italian and Chinese mafia.
Biancoshock found in the abandoned building thousands of "new" flyers intended to promote the cinema and the restaurants inside. 15 years later, he decided to distribute these leaflets in Muggiò to promote another brilliant example of corruption and bankruptcy.
15.12.2021 BIANCOSHOCK GAVE HARMEN DE HOOP AN ASSIGNMENT: MAKE A WORK ABOUT RELIGION.
