MURAL INAUGURATION AT THE ICA AND EXHIBITION CURATED BY HAYP POP UP GALLERY
ICA Yerevan & HAYP Pop Up Gallery present
SAMVEL SAGHATELIAN
August 26 – September 26, 2016
Location:
Institute of Contemporary Art Yerevan
48 Fizkulturnikner St, Yerevan
http://www.ica.am
Opening night:
Friday, November 26 at 19:00
Click here to sign up to the Facebook event
Open daily 16:00 – 21:00
Free admission
*This exhibition is recommended for adult audiences, contains obscene language.
This summer 2016 the ICA commissioned a site-specific mural by Yerevan born artist, Samvel “Saga” Saghatelian entitled “ՍԵՐ is Electric”. The work is an elaboration on “LOVE is electric Է”, a graphic sign board the artist created in June 2015 at the time of the Electric Yerevan protest. Now, one year later, Yerevan has seen a second protest that, although not concerning electricity, was perhaps more “electric” in its intensity, mediatic coverage, and violence.
The mural and its original sign board are part of the artist’s “Political and Personal Protest Signs” series, which takes a playful formalistic approach to the contrasting forms of Latin and Armenian letters. His “protests” emphasize love (or its lack thereof), whether personal, societal, or governmental. The word “love” itself is a phonetic play on the Armenian term “լավ”, or “good”.
On the occasion of the mural’s public inauguration, the ICA has joined forces with HAYP Pop Up Gallery to curate the second edition of Sam Saga’s “Political and Personal Protest Signs”. “LOVE Is eleCtric Again (ICA)” represents an organic follow-up to HAYP5.0 (ENTER THROUGH THE SMOKESHOP), this time with an even greater call-to-action. Just as this year’s protest was more intense than last year’s, Sam Saga’s personal protest for love has multiplied in scale from hand-held sign board to the entire building facade.
More background and #WorkInProgress info here.
Facebook event here.
Pictures of the opening night (Mural inauguration):
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