Astrit Ismaili (RKS/NL, 1991)
Residency period: May-July 2024
During my residency, I continued my recent research into the notion of “creativity when limited”, which refers to my own history and to figures from the past who overcame certain environmental and socio-political limits. I also finalized a series of drawings depicting the chaotic yet harmonious interactions between humans, the supernatural, and machines. Continuing my work of amplifying voices, figures, and narratives that have been forgotten or expunged from history, I developed the final stages of a future exhibition format comprising a performance, a sound installation, an album, a concert, and a short film. Thanks to the team at La Becque, I also had the opportunity to perform my piece The First Flower Concert at the residency’s 5-year anniversary in May 2024. — Astrit Ismaili
Born in Kosovo and currently based in Amsterdam, Astrit Ismaili explores the transformative potential of bodies and spaces in their performances. By presenting characters, most of them singers, symbolic figures, or alter egos made up of fictional, historical, and personal references, the artist also explores the role of the voice in pop culture and its relationship with identity politics. Using body extensions and portable musical instruments, Ismaili’s work embodies the possibility of constructing new worlds and shaping new icons, while blurring the intimate relationship between performer and audience.
Astrit Ismaili, La Becque, 2024, photo Matthieu Croizier, Emilien Itim and Aurélien Haslebacher