Ideadestroyingmuros: Bridging Communities through Art and Activism

Her artistic proposal is mostly community-based and develops themes about feminism, life choices other than capitalism and also about migration movements, with a strong cross-border position related to how to create bridges to peaceful events and between – cultural creation. The name ideadestroyingmuros is inspired by the work of Luigi Nono, a Venetian musician and composer, who made “Voci destroying Walls” in 1970 based on the voices of workers in factories.

Idedestroyingmuros presents the show “Ha-mígdala. Confluences of mystical diagrams. The collection was born in 2005 in Venice when a group of Fine Arts and visual arts students started working. It is currently active in different areas, especially between the cities of Valencia, Verona and Palermo (Italy) and Thiafoura (Senegal). Her practice is primarily based on community art. “Everything we do has a community component, especially when it is executed,” said Lara Ge, a member of the group, who was present at El Salto by phone.

What are the goals of ideadestroyingmuros?
Through creative practice, we ourselves try to change our emotions, our political situations and our concerns and allow, through artistic practice, events to happen in which people can relate. We do it often, while our hands are busy, the word appears in another way and creates a space for communication, for understanding, different from just conversation. Through creative practice we nurture community space. While this happens, something new is created, it is very rich for everyone. There is a feeling that something is changing, in yourself, in the materials and the environment. There is a shared consciousness that brings much light to life. Art illuminates, puts light where something was previously not so present, invisible.

The first time I heard about you was because of your relationship with the Senegalese community. Can you tell us a little about it?
For 8 years or more, we have shared our daily life with the Senegalese community, especially with the Baye Fall community, which is a Sufi path of Islam, which has grown in Senegal through a person, Serigne Ahmadou Bamba, who was a secret guide. and who made a peaceful resistance during the French colonization, creating a place of freedom in spirituality.

We are married to different Baye Fall people and two babies have been born from these unions. There are also more babies around other mixed relationships, with life partners who are not part of the group. The relationship is very interesting, it has developed in a surprising and unexpected way. We came from transfeminism and anti-capitalism and we did not think that an alliance with them could work. By sharing our daily lives we realized that we had many values ​​in common. Much to learn from each other.

There is a very committed relationship. We always try to create a third place, which does not connect one culture to the other. Our goal is that love allows another space to be created. Love and care is a political responsibility. Try to make the relationship very responsible and not repeat patterns of exploitation. And this is a very complicated path, a daily commitment and also interesting the support that each person’s community provides all the time. There is deep support for resistance to the external context.

From a political point of view, it is interesting to be very close to a country, Senegal, which is moving towards possible and necessary self-determination. New elections have been held and a party that promotes independence from Europe and no neo-colonial power continues to win. For us, this process focuses on our daily life and is a promise to renew ourselves, to move forward without repeating capitalist schemes. How do you do something new without repeating previous oppressions? It is very exciting when it comes to sharing life.

Italians married Baye Fall, this happened over time, but afterwards for us as Italians it was important to recalibrate our own history in terms of fascism. Because there were racial laws that did not allow marriages between people of different races. People could not mix. When we married the boys we were looking to rebalance this situation.

How did you choose La Surera de Almedíjar as a residence to create your latest work?
We participated in a call from the Consorsi de Museus for an artistic residency in Almedíjar at the Rural Meeting Place La Surera. We were chosen as a group from València and also two other artists, Gabriela Rivera and Nacho Álvarez. It was a great opportunity to make art in a natural environment as a communicator outside the big cities. We do the residency in February, March and April, when nature wakes up after the winter.

Almedíjar means meeting place, because in this area the meeting of Jewish, Christian and Muslim cultures took place. We wanted to generate an image that had to be related to our daily encounter with the Muslim community of Baye Fall. And also the meeting between Ramadan and the Holy Week which was at the same time and coming together.

And finally, what became of the residence?
In Almedíjar we carry out a project called Ha-mígdala, Confluences of Mystical Diagrams, based on the almond tree, a crop that is very present in Almedíjar. We chose this tree for its symbolic and mystical meaning, because the aluminum shape was used in various spiritual paths. For example, suggesting mystery in the Christian religion, but also the mandala shape, that is, the geometric shape that recalls the shape of an almond in the Islamic religion, are symbols of the door of life, the entry into the world and the connection between the earthly world and the spiritual world. Through this tree and this natural context we create a series of representations, through engraved linen graphics.

During the stay we use writing to write small diary texts where we write down sensations, intuitions, images or experiences we lived during the stay. We changed these sensations into videos and the method that united the whole process was the method during the residence, which was more of a method where time was essential, in the most considered form. The first month was just to create an imagination based on what we felt and the next two months we studied at a socio-political and geopolitical level. Almedíjar allowed us to reflect and look for ways to talk about the encounter.