UMARELL* CONSIDERS FAST-ART ONE OF THE SLOWEST FORMS OF ART, IN WHICH THE IMMEDIATE PACE AT WHICH THINGS OCCUR ASKS FOR A CERTAIN KIND OF ATTENTION, SPECIFIC TO A SPACE AND TO THE GROUP OF PEOPLE ENGAGING WITH THAT SPACE.
THIS INVITES PROPOSALS TO BE CREATED IN RESPONSE, THOUGHT OF ON THE SPOT, CONVERSATIONS TO EMERGE AND EVENTS TO BE ANNOUNCED THE DAY OF. IT’S ABOUT ORGANIZING ART AND HAVING ART PROMPT WHAT TO ORGANIZE.
For Giorgia and Ridwana UMARELL is a time-based methodology where there are certain non-negotiables and the rest is negotiable. Giorgia and Ridwana are artists and an artist duo that conceive of their practice as a shared commitment to attending specific spaces in given moments in time. Giorgia went to law school and Ridwana studied design. They both received their MFA from Columbia University and since have collaborated in different projects that propose events within the already scheduled and surprise that which is unscheduled.
They have arranged, organized, installed, and deinstalled internationally at various locations such as 187 East Broadway, 28 Forsyth Street, 537 Manhattan Avenue, Anton Kern Gallery (upcoming), Encúpula, Fondazione Cini, Fundación PROA, LeRoy Neiman Gallery, Prentis Hall Freight Elevator, SK Gallery, Sinkhole Gallery, The Blanc Gallery, Wallach Art Gallery.
By framing their activities within set periods of time, Giorgia and Ridwana seek to find a rhythm to accommodate works in process, impromptu presentations and a broad range of propositions brought to them by other artists. They host, arrange, facilitate, organize, schedule, print, design, publish, announce, install, de-install, photograph, scan, write, make.
In the past, they have relied mostly on artist grants to set up the conditions for their project to happen in different spaces, by entering short-term rental agreements, using artists studios to display other artists' works, using institutional facilities they had access to and collaborating with galleries to negotiate different premises for their work.