This performance was staged by Kira Nova in collaboration with Sanya Kantarovsky, as part of his exhibition Apricot Juice at Studio Voltaire.
Kantarovsky’s exhibition departs from Mikhail Bulgakov’s enigmatic masterpiece novel The Master and Margarita and here, the artist has brought together his own work with that of Lithuanian-born artist Kira Nova.
Nova’s practice combines physical theatre, dance, stand-up, Butoh, perverted academic language and sculptural work. During the two live performances Nova interacts with her environment on a cat shaped stage, built to conjure the form of Bulgakov’s demonic feline character Behemoth.
Kira Nova is a New-York based performance artist. Selected performances include: The Kitchen, New York; Time-Based Art Festival, Portland; Beursschouwburg theater, Brussels; dOCUMENTA (13), Kassel; de Appel art center, Amsterdam; Center Pompidou, Paris; Performa 09 at Swiss Institute, New York; Swiss Sculpture Exhibition Biel-Bienne, Le Mouvement: Performing the City.
Sanya Kantarovsky (b. 1982, Moscow, Russia) lives and works in New York. Recent solo and two person exhibitions include: Gushers, Marc Foxx, Los Angeles (2015); Allergies, Casey Kaplan, New York (2014); Little Vera with Ella Kruglyanskaya, KIM?, Riga (2014); and You Are not an Evening, GAK, Bremen (2013). Kantarovsky participated in the group exhibition Notes on Neo-Camp at Studio Voltaire, London in 2013. Recent special projects include: Research and Reporting at KW, Berlin (2014); and LAX façade, Los Angeles (2013).
Kantarovsky is represented by Marc Foxx, Los Angeles; Tanya Leighton, Berlin; and Stuart Shave/Modern Art, London. Kantarovsky will collaborate with Stuart Bailey on an extensive monograph due to be released in autumn 2015. Published by Studio Voltaire and generously supported by Casey Kaplan, New York; Marc Foxx, Los Angeles; Tanya Leighton, Berlin; and Stuart Shave/Modern Art, London.
Kira Nova, Apricot Juice, 2015. Performance (22 mins), Studio Voltaire, London. Commissioned by Studio Voltaire for How to work together, a shared project with Chisenhale Gallery and The Showroom. Courtesy of the artist and Studio Voltaire, London. Credit Devron System Films.
