Thursday opening at the Zilkha Gallery at Wesleyan

Ezra and Cecile Zilkha Gallery, Wesleyan University
238 Washington Ter., Middletown, (860) 685-3355
Eiko & Koma: Time is not Even, Space is not Empty
Nov. 20—Dec. 20, 2009
Opening reception: Thurs., Nov. 19, 5—7 p.m.
Artist talk at 5:30 p.m.

Press release

Time is not Even, Space is not Empty at Wesleyan University's Ezra and Cecile Zilkha Gallery is the first event of Eiko & Koma's multi-year Retrospective Project. For this groundbreaking project, Eiko & Koma place themselves in the unusual role of self-curating a series of visual and performance exhibitions that explore their own legacy. Long familiar to the Wesleyan community as performers and teachers, Eiko & Koma are innovative artists originally from Japan. Based in New York since 1976, they have since presented their works worldwide and are the recipients of numerous honors, including the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship and the American Dance Festival's Scripps Award.

Time is not Even, Space is not Empty will use video, textiles, smells, and other objects to create a textured landscape, illuminating how the intersection of space and time is dense with memories and possibilities. Both old and new performance works of Eiko & Koma are source material for this exhibition: Fission (1980), Wind (1993), Breath (1998) and Raven (2009). Together they serve to promote deeper understanding of Eiko & Koma's artistic trajectory. Furthermore, during the Zilkha show, Eiko & Koma will often be seen working and rehearsing in the space to further develop their retrospective project.

The larger Retrospective Project is comprised of new commissions, restagings of old work, the publication of a catalog, video compilations, panels, and workshops and will allow Eiko & Koma to explore the past and present of their 38-year collaboration. In the next three years, different phases of the project will be presented in New York City and other cities across the US, including a "living" installation at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis in 2010.

The public is invited to attend the opening reception for Time is not Even, Space is not Empty on Thurs., Nov. 19 from 5—7 p.m. Starting at 5:30 p.m., Eiko & Koma will begin a performance in various parts of the gallery space. The performance will be recorded and will subsequently be shown as a part of the installation during the remainder of the exhibition. The exhibition will run from November 20 through December 20. Gallery Hours: Tuesday—Sunday, noon—4 p.m.; Friday noon—8 p.m.