Coup d’Espace IV – ‘The Miraculous Artist’

Washington
Project
for
the
Arts
presented
the
fourth
installment
of
Coup
d’Espace,
a
program
that
invited
WPA
member
artists
to
stage
their
own
exhibitions
and
programming
in
the
Dupont
Circle
office
space.
In
this
iteration,
artist
Carolina
Mayorga
transformed
the
space
into
a
place
 for
reflection,
offering
guidance
and
counsel
to
visitors.

The
Miraculous
Artist
was
an
interactive
installation
comprising
video,
performance,
live
music,
printed
 material,
and
a
non‐denominational
confessional.
On
opening
night,
audience
members
had
the
opportunity
to
consult
with
and
receive
free
advice
from
The
Miraculous
Artist.
For
a
small
fee,
visitors
could
purchase
a
variety
of
laminated
cards
to
that
proffered
solutions
to
individual
problems
(which was available
in
English
and
Spanish). Mayorga’s
installation
was
accompanied
on
opening
night
by
an
improvised
organ
repertoire
performed
by
musician,
Greg
Svitil.
Svitil
has
collaborated
with
Mayorga
on
past
projects
such
as
Pig
Lengua
and
Newspaper
Soup.

Carolina
Mayorga’s
artwork
addresses
issues
of
social
and
political
content.
Themes
of
migration,
war,
and
identity
are
woven
throughout
the
artist’s
videos,
performances,
and
site‐specific
installations.
Mayorga
received
her
BFA
in
Art
and
Textiles
in
Bogotá,
Colombia,
and
MFA
in
sculpture
from
the
University
of
Kansas,
Lawrence.
Her
work
has
been
exhibited
in
solo
exhibitions
at
Transformer,
Washington,
DC,
and
the
Arlington
Arts
Center,
Arlington,
VA.

The
performance
and
opening
reception
was on
Friday,
October
2, 2009
from
6‐8pm,
which was held
in
conjunction
with
the
Dupont
Circle
Galleries
First‐Friday
Art
Walk.
The
Miraculous
Artist
performance
took
place
during
the
opening
reception
only;
the
installation
and
video
remained
on
view
through
October
30,
2009.
Gallery
hours
were
Monday‐Friday
from
10am‐5pm.

This
exhibition
and
the
opening
reception
were
free
and
open
to
the
public.