“Lose a Step,” the 5th art project in public space within the Accelerator program, is launched on August 17, at 6:00 p.m., in Bucharest. The works will be installed and presented at two addresses in the capital: 21 Nicolae Titulescu Str. and 12 Banu Manta.
“Lose a step” is a collaborative project initiated by two artists selected within the Accelerator, Delia A. Prodan and Andrei Arion, which treats areas in Bucharest where road repairs are taking place by installing shoe cleaning grids, produced by the two artists, a symbol of the high level of discomfort in a Bucharest perpetually pressed by road repairs, which take place simultaneously and which prevent rapid movement and connection.
The artists Delia A. Prodan and Andrei Arion intervene with art objects such as shoe-cleaning grids made of metal and terrazzo, which symbolize the impact of the cities’ precarious infrastructures on the inhabitants.
The “Lose a Step” project is an invitation to introspection. Between the boundaries of the accelerated pace of life and the acute need for mobility, repairs are felt as obstacles and further feed the already existing discomfort. However, urban spaces need time to be rebuilt and become functional again. Like them, we humans need these moments of respite to slow down a series of searches and give ourselves time.
Thoughtful, seemingly mundane objects want to activate places where craters and mud persist. At the same time, they take the form of a practical, tangible shoe-cleaning tool. The series of artworks either propose an interaction with a familiar yet strange object, or they can be overlooked.
The work can represent a ritualistic and meditative act, despite the initial frustration caused by the space. It is a commentary on the failing infrastructures of cities and their impact on the inhabitants.
The public is invited to join the artists at Nicolae Titulescu 21, where they will witness the presentation of the art project in the public space “Lose a Step,” the 5th within the Accelerator program. Mentoring and production for emerging artists.
Delia A. Prodan‘s practice revolves around photography and writing. From pieces of marble and concrete to metal and brick, her works reveal a nostalgic and empathetic perspective. She works predominantly with objects and books.
Andrei Arion lives and works in Bucharest, and sculpture and installation predominate in his artistic practice. In 2021 he exhibited at the Jecza Gallery in a summer show called “Light Clarity Avocado Salad In The Morning.” In 2022, he participated in the “At The Edge Of The World” exhibition at the Art Encounters Foundation in Timișoara.
Funded by SEE Grants 2014 – 2021 within the RO-CULTURE Program and implemented by the Eastwards Prospectus Cultural Association (ACEP), in partnership with Gaep Gallery from Bucharest and i8 Gallery from Reykjavik, Iceland, Accelerator is the first and most complex mentorship for emerging artists which offers young artists a strategic approach to their careers.
