Toshie Takeuchi and Donia Jourabchi will give a film presentation and a talk. ‘A House Placed in Between’ is Takeuchi’s long-term research and film project in collaboration with many different professionals/experts, including Jourabchi. As a result of 2 weeks residency at Kommunal Kunst og Teknik (KKT), they will show a film – ‘A House Placed in Between – a poetry in the comfortable grey zone’ (ca. 35mins)

The film will start at 20.00. All are welcome.

Description;
Around the end of Mobutu’s authoritarian regime, the economy of Zaire (now D. R. Congo) collapsed, and consequently their gorgeous embassies couldn’t maintain their images and functions. Many of the Congo’s foreign assets have been seized by foreign investors due to the country’s large-scale debt. In 2009, the Congo embassy in the Hague Netherlands was suddenly closed and their diplomats were “thrown out on the street” with having unpaid salary. Reparation from their home country never arrived.

In 2010, the friendly Dutch civil law that protected squatting activities harshly changed. The Congolese embassy in the Hague was squatted a few days before the law was put into force.

‘A House Placed In Between’ is a project with research, film and a following performance. It was inspired by Takeuchi’s personal experience from living in an art community located in this former embassy of D.R. Congo. The trigger of her exploration was the encounter with a group of Congolese protesters. In the late November 2011, the opaque process and unfair result of the Congolese presidential election led to large protests by Congolese communities in major cities around the world. During these riots, four Congolese people came and broke into the house to revolt against the government. They didn’t know the embassy had occupied by non-Congolese – “us”. The protesters were confused, and their frustration started pointing towards us. For them, it was an absolute territory of the Congo. But for us, it was our “home”! After police intervention, the protesters had to move away. We were protected in this grey zone – inside the diplomatic immunity of the Congo. A strong feeling remained in her.

By using mixed method such as documentation of making process of a re-enactment, performative body movements, interviews, city intervention, the film explores the notion of property, home and territory, while shedding light on the house’s unstable dual identity. This project is a reflection and critic on Takeuchi’s own environment, at the same time, a commentary on the on-going postcolonialism in the modern society.

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Donia Jourabchi, Iranian, born in Brussels (1986), is a sound explorer. She studied sound engineering at the SAE Institute of Brussels, developed skills in interactive sound techniques, real-time processing and interface design at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Digital and Sound Cultures in Belgium, and electroacoustic composition at ArtZoyd in France. Her focus moved towards a research-based practice during her Master’s degree at the Institute of Sonology in The Netherlands. In her work, Donia sculpts textures of sound as a physical matter, designing spatial and sonic strategies that activate potential mechanisms of engaging the social within the acoustic awareness of space. An approach towards a spatial practice of sound and situated knowledges through experimentation and exploration of the contexture between sound, bodies and space.
https://soundcloud.com/donia-jrbchi

Toshie Takeuchi (JP/DK) is a visual artist using photography, film and performance as her main mediums. Her interest and practice lays in exploring special histories, stories and interpretations of a particular land, property, territory and/or a personal inner space. Through her artworks, she offers an alternative perceptions to the viewer, thereby creating journeys and narratives of thoughts.
toshietakeuchi.com