Higher by Spinning

Quartair in Sarajevo

8-11 February 2017 Exhibition/Performances/Talks with:

Paul Donker Duyvis Pierfrancesco Gava Young-Gyu Kim Astrid Nobel Lieke Peeters Ludmila Rodrigues Mike Rijnierse Pietertje van Splunter Maria Tsagkari

Curated by:

Jessy Theo Rahman

Higher by Spinning is an exhibition of nine artists selected by Jessy Rahman, co-founder of Quartair Contemporary Art Initiatives. Quartair is a project space and a platform in The Hague (Netherlands), operating in an international network with focus on contemporary practices.

Quartair initiates and supports exhibitions, projects and exchanges with artists and artist-run-spaces at home and abroad. It pursues an emphatic cooperation with other cultural organizations. The title ‘Higher by Spinning’ refers to the Derwish dancers who are still active in Bosnia & Herzegovina, connected to Sufism, a mystic form of Islam. During Rahman’s first visit to Sarajevo in 2005, he got in contact with the culture of the Derwish dancers, who by dancing on and on, around their own axis, eventually reach a state of trance.

This so called trance states can also be experienced in ordinary moments of daily life. Through routines and repetitive actions, one can experience a certain ‘high’, loosing awaress and control - which can be felt as automatic motion, as if being remotely controlled.

The artworks of the selected artists, deal with this concept, in one way or another, through various media, techniques and scales. ‘Higher by Spinning’ is an intense program of four days during the 33 rd International Festival ‘Sarajevo Winter’.

Vernissage: February 8 th at 1pm Opening Hours: February 9 th – 11 th from 10 am – 5 pm Venue: Gallery Charlama Terezija, Sarajevo 71000, Bosnia & Herzegovina Conference/Artist Talks February 11 th at 2 pm

33 rd International Festival ‘Sarajevo Winter’ Sarajevska Zima 2017 sarajevskazima.ba

Quartair, The Hague, Netherlands www.quartair.nl

Astrid Nobel Growth rings sketch, 2017 astridnobel.nl

Mike Rijnierse KLOK, 2015 mikerijnierse.nl

Lieke Peeters JUST TRUST ME, 2016 liekepeeters.nl

Pierfrancesco Gava Mapping the Lady, 2014 pierfrancescogava.com

Young-Gyu Kim Black Rice, 2016 www.seeaf.org

Pietertje van Splunter Panorama Continuüm, 2016 in cooperation with Zeger Reyers pietertje.net