GERARD ORTÍN

Organised in sessions for fifteen people following prior booking, the project Intravía proposes a night route through the woods in the Collserola nature reserve above Barcelona, in which the participants take the central role in the action. An unfamiliar natural space, a culturally mediated space and the mental spaces of each person simultaneously set the stage and supply the actors. The limits of perception, the symbolic construction of the setting and its physical experience act as both stimuli and obstacles. This highly suggestive proposal, not exempt of ritual meaning, propounds a dialogue among the audience, the environment and artistic intervention. The route, which is divided into different sections, interactive formats and times, is guided by a protocol explained at the starting point.

It is an “animal approach to the landscape”, a cultural phenomenology that goes beyond the clichés of bucolic romanticism and prettified landscapes in the interests of genuine experimentation with the medium of intimacy.

Gerard Ortín (Barcelona, 1988) holds a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Barcelona and studied at the Aula de Música Moderna i Jazz (Liceu Conservatory). He currently lives in Amsterdam (Netherlands) where he is taking a Masters at Sandberg Instituut. In 2012 he presented the exhibition “Cortex” with Marc Larré at the Estrany-De la Mota gallery. He draws on the combination of his art and music education to experiment with various media, sound and performance formats. He has worked with the group Sons de Barcelona (in Phonos, MTG and UPF) and on the Voz Mal project with James Ferrete, which has been presented at the LEM (Barcelona) and Festival Poetas por Km² (Madrid) among others. He received a Guasch Coranty grant for artistic creation in 2010 and has been resident artist at Nauestruch.

His personal research has focussed on the exploration of an immediate environment: the garden of his home, seen as an interstitial space between the home and the woods. This scenario has determined the guidelines of a process that evokes the idea of nature as a psychic space. Gerard Ortín spent nearly four years developing a subjective portrait of his garden and the adjacent woods of Collserola, materialized in photographs, slide sequences, video actions, video creations, performances, audio pieces and installations. With the aid of a grant for artistic creation from Sala d’Art Jove, he planned a first route in 2011, a daytime tour of the woods. He decided to intervene with various materials in this new “uncontrolled” space, and share, through a group itinerary, his vision of nature as a psychic space as well as a physical one. The management of this experience led him to rethink and adapt his work strategies, which in turn opened up new avenues of exploration in the process. Finally, in 2012, as part of the decentralised projects programme organised by BCN Producció ’12 (La Capella), he presented this Intravía project.

IMPORTANT NOTE FOR ALL PARTICIPANTS:

– Once you have bought your ticket, you must send an email to seccioirregular@mercatflors.cat indicating your name, mobile phone number and the date you have bought the ticket for in order to coordinate the event.

– This piece entails a walk lasting over three hours along tracks and paths in Collserola, with steep climbs and descents. Please refrain from buying a ticket if you are not physically fit.

– Not apt for persons with mobility problems.

– Please wear walking shoes and comfortable old clothes, suitable for any adverse conditions such as mud and low branches.

– This piece was presented last year as part of the BCN Producció programme (La Capella). Owing to the limited places, many people were unable to assist, so if you have already seen it please give other people a chance to be included.

7 pm Meeting point in front of the Bar Zurich in Plaça de Catalunya (in front of the FGC train station)

10.20pm Return to Barcelona from the FGC train station in Les Planes

10.50pm Arrival at Plaça de Catalunya

A project by Gerard Ortín

Collaborators Ana Aitana Fernández, Jaume Ferrete, Laurent-David Garnier and Cristian Herrera

Team Jaume Ferrete, Irati Gorostidi, Cristian Herrera, Willi Maese, Gerard Ortín, Nil Ortín, GUille Vidal-Ribas, Marc Vives

Thanks to La Capella Team – BCNProducció’13, Galeria Estrany-de la Mota, Anna Castellví, Anna Suaña, Gabriel Ortín, Víctor Mier, Albert Coma