__blcn is an ongoing idea of using urban balconies as places to showcase art. The idea of the vitrine is usually related to a ground floor, close proximity relation to the sidewalk and the street in the environment. Vitrines are spaces dedicated to showcase items,to be eye-catchy and in many cases to even showcase art. They are private spaces but with a public attitude.
On the other hand, balconies are completely private spaces, disconnected from commercial use and rather distant from the ground. However, balconies traditionally are spaces that give a glimpse of their occupants’ lifestyle. That’s why balconies – although in most cases are the simple idea of a piece of floor hanging over a public street / space – are spaces of high cultural interest. From the tiny balconies of HK, that are used as secondary space to store personal items, to the traditional balconies in old European cities where they are used as spaces to dry the laundry, __blcn attempts to challenge this non-traditional art space as a space to show art. Politically independent, they offer safe space for exhibition of art that is being neglected by institutions.
Balconies have an “exhibitionist” attitude: More like someone that moves naked in their apartment without caring what the neighbors think, having the public to wonder. The project mix-matches artists from different regions of the world to balconies in different cities of the world. If the balconies could give us a glimpse of the cultural identity of the people they live in, how could they affect the way the art is being shown and produced in different environments?
Itinerary:
Japan >> Australia >> Los Angeles: Mother Chaos by Runurunu, Caulis.9 and Halo (Torre Alain) March 2022
Malaysia >> London: Valerie You, April 2022
USA >> Budapest: Trojan horse / Achilles heel by Ruben Ulises, May 2022
