What is Trade?

Trade is an arts project, initiated to explore how ideas of collectivism, network and sharing cultures can control an artistic process and shape a result. Within Trade we strive to actively and practically work within these themes.

A part of the collective study manifests in a close collaboration with a network, composed of private and collegial contacts – a collaboration we explore and develop from production to production.

The project started in the summer of 2010 with a two week long research period where we explored the concept SHARING – we hitch-hiked through Denmark and Germany using CouchSurfing to find places to sleep, had a joint food account and challenged ourselves to meet new people in new situations. Based on these experiences we started a collaboration with a network consisting of colleagues, friends and family. We sent them tasks, the network responded, we developed new material, and so it went on back and forth. The process is documented here on the blog and the result Trade – the Performance was presented at two different venues in Copenhagen, fall 2010.

In the summer of 2011 we continued the project with a three week residency at PAF in St. Erme, France. This time the focus was on the Private in the Public. Inspired by the social media and their set templates and frameworks we investigate what effect this has on us as private/public persons – What is staged and what is reality? Who knows what about whom, and how is the communicated information being interpreted? The result Trade – the Installation is an interactive exhibition with performative elements. Premiers at Bolsjefabrikken in February 2012.

Trade encourage you to comment and participate in the Trade project – by creating your own contributions, by sharing your thoughts about the project, or by posting whatever inspires you.

Welcome!

Trade is initiated by dancer/choreographer Andrea Deres, Carolina Bäckman, Ellesiv Selseng and composer Johannes Burström.