Sunday November 3 2013, 1pm
My Own Green Plastic Dreamworld
ROSA MEI + Collaborators
Kamky Zheng & Gerrit Wellens (L.A/Belgium)
@ STUDIO XX – 4001, Berri (corner Duluth) space 201
Scaled donation: $5, *FREE* for members. Rafraîchissements seront servis.
+ MIAO DAO WORKSHOP with ROSA MEI
NEW DATE * Sunday October 27 2013, 1PM – 5PM ->
Studio XX is proud to present during the Wired Woman Salon # 99, an afternoon dedicated to the residency presentation of artist Rosa Mei, and her project WOMAN WARRIOR, taking place from september 16 to november 8 2013 at Studio XX. The presentation entitled My Own Green Plastic Dreamworld will be divided into 2 parts, the first one based on the creative and the second on the dissemination aspect of the project.
How do you build a fully functional green screen studio with stuff from the Dollarama and a local hardware store in five simple steps? Rosa Mei and two of her dancers (poppers from LA and Belgium) demonstrate a real-time compositing process and how to go from a studio in Montreal to the Arctic Circle and Machu Picchu in record time. Mei chronicles 2000 years of woman warriors through a mix of martial arts, live action animation and chroma-key compositing. Simple desktop technology can create epic dreamscapes out of cheap, green plastic tablecloths and duck tape. Imagine Dali. The world is my oyster.
How do you take your epic dreamworlds and squash them into a simple MacApp, viewable on all iPads, iPhones and iPods? Use technology to lure an audience with the promise of blood, guts and dubstep dance….!
During her artist residency from September 16 to November 8, choreographer/director and professional martial artist Rosa Mei produces WOMAN WARRIOR, a time-lapse journey of female fighters from 3500BC to the 21st century. Using green screen compositing and keying effects, she transposes her own martial arts moves onto historical images of woman warriors from prehistory to present day.
Rosa Mei has over 20 years of experience in martial arts. She is a US gold and silver medalist, former member of the US wushu team and a black belt in aikido. She is the only female disciple of renowned traditional kung fu master Zhang Xinbin, specializing in Tongbei, based on the movements of a white gibbon. Uniquely suited for this project, Mei specializes in martial arts weapons work (single and double hand swords, spear, short and long staff) which will help in this time-lapse recreation since many of the historical women warriors carried axes and swords.
Biography
Rosa Mei is a theatre director, choreographer, filmmaker and multi-media artist. An American-born Chinese currently based in Antwerp (BE) and Prague (CZ), Mei mixes virtuostic performance with the poetics of place, race and ethnicity to create a new type of urban anthropology. She has created over 30 works for the stage which have been presented at major venues throughout the world. Her work reflects her diverse multi-cultural background and interest in literary symbolism. Her intricate pieces are somehow both frenetic and serene, bizarre tapestries of mathematically layered movement and surrealist symbolism.
Kamky Zheng | Originally from Guangdong, Kamky has worked with Cie 13/ Rosa Mei since 2009 and was involved in Archipel, Europalia China 2010 and the Scandianvia tour of Havamal. A Homeland popper currently based in L.A. Kamky specializes in robotic, hydraulics and micromovement. He has taught popping workshops throughout China and is a founding member of Takala Studios (LA & NYC). Youtube video
Gerrit Wellens | A member of Les Anciens, Gerrit aka “Wise” has over 20 years experience in Bak Mei Kung Fu and is a senior disciple of Grandmaster Jie Kon Sieuw. He was an original member of the Antwerp Hip Hop Movement in the ’80s and has performed with Cie 13/Rosa Mei for the past 4 years. An OG popper known for his seamless mix of waving, tutting and martial arts, he regularly gives master classes and judges Hip Hop Battles throughout Europe. He was recently featured in Belgium’s Got Talent. Youtube video
With support from the Flemish Ministry of Culture.