Catwalk Portraits

Catwalk Portraits was created in November 2010 as a performing art project. Portraits are displayed over a custom dress while the artist walks in different cities of different countries.

The 21 portraits decorating the dress represent a tribute to the Canadian actor, producer and director Kiefer Sutherland. These portraits are the result of the artist work driven by the admiration that she has for this actor, particularly for his talented performance as the TV character Jack Bauer. The artwork displayed in this section has no commercial purpose.

- Please see the agenda and the press release section.

- Pictures taken at different locations are shown in the photo albums below.

Catwalk Portraits AGENDA: an Itinerant International performance exhibition

Please watch this site for updates and new locations

December 2010

11th December: London

Christmas period 2010-2011

Several cities in France (Marselle, Montpellier, Lyon...).

Switzerland

Andorra

Spring 2011

Barcelona (Spain)

Summer 2011

California (USA)

Fall 2011

Madrid (Spain)

Berlin (Germany)

PRESS RELEASE for Catwalk Portraits, London

PRESS RELEASE

17/11/2010

Summary

“Catwalk Portraits” is an artistic event during which Morwen, the artist, will be wearing a garment specially designed for this purpose.

London is the first European city chosen for the official launch of this presentation. The show consist of a walking tour around the most touristic spots in London. The starting point will be the Nelson’s column in Trafalgar Square, on the 11^th of December 2010 at 11:00 am

After the English tour, the performance will be taking place in different other countries such as France, Germany, Switzerland.

The Catwalk Portraits project

This idea iwas developed by Alicia Murcia (alias Morwen), a Spanish artist, currently basedin Barcelona. She used to live in the UK for the last 6 years, during which period she had presented various paintings exhibitions. Morwen enjoyed very much the experience of living in the UK, that why she choose London for this occasion to hold the launch of this very special art happening . The artist believes that every single person interested in visual arts will be delighted to attend to this event.

During her journey in London, Morwen will wear an original custom-made dress, serving as a base to attach and display her artwork,. The design has a semi-rigid structure, evoking a Victorian court dress, which is suppose to favorize the display and viewing of art painting. This special dress was created in collaboration with the talented Italian fashion designer Carmela Rosciano.

Who is Morwen?

She is a very passionate, self driven, and see herself as an innovative and creative artist, always looking for novel ways to express her art. Her source of inspiration comes from the contemplation of her surroundings during her every-day life, where insignificant details may trigger vibrant new ideas out of her wild imagination. She will sketch down on draft paper or canvas the fruit of her electricthoughts. All this creative passion can be now harvested and displayed during the Catwalk Portraits event.

Where does the Catwalk Portraits project come from?

By developing her own interpretation of art through energetic expressive moment, Morwen has created a very special kind of art performance. Inspired by model catwalk and street fashion, this new way of expression can be considered as a fresh, dramatic and theatrical way to express to the people how she feels about art through her sophisticated creativity. hence the Catwalk Portraits concept was born.

During the Catwalk Portraits, Morwen wants to evoke that special feeling that all artists feel sometimes. This feeling that occurs when their artwork becomes as important to artists as their own body and soul. Morwen desires to interpret this emotional affection by an illustrative metaphor. The artist decided to wear the artworks on her, close to her skin, like if it was part as part of her own body, part of her own soul and self/conscience.

In summary, with Catwalk Portraits Morwen want to send out a dynamic, vivacious messages: “a fun, eye-catching and original way to live and share art”.

The 21 Portraits Project and its link with Catwalk Portraits

The artwork that Morwen will “wear” over this special dress is a careful selection of her paintings, which are part of an art exhibition she is hosting as the same time in an art gallery in Barcelona. The name of this art exhibition is "21 Portraits", and is about a research project exploring the personality of human being through a series of 21 portraits.

What is the link between the Catwalk Portraits performance event and the 21 Portraits exhibition? The artist is very enthusiastic about searching innovative and creative ways of artistic expression to share her art with people at the same time in different countries .

Most people nowadays would point at the Internet as the most obvious way to achieve this, but t Morwen wonders whether we can go any further and thus create new ways of sharing art in a more personal way.

Catwalk Portraits is her personal answer.

The purpose of Catwalk Portraits is also the promotion of an idea: By "wearing” and “taking out for a walk" her artistic project to the streets in different cities across Europe, Morwen intends to help breaking up with the traditional idea that art has to be confined between walls. At the same time, Catwalk Portraits is a special way to give London people the opportunity to see a glimpse of her work that is exposed in Barcelona, people who cannot be in Spain for the 21 Portraits exhibition.

Catwalk Portraits: an itinerary international exhibition

This 21 Portraits project consist of an itinerant exhibition of in several European cities; with the physical display of the complete 21 Portraits series. Independently of the 21 Portraits program, the Catwalk Portraits event will tour in different European cities during 2010 and 2011, as the promotion of not only the 21 Portraits artwork, but as an artistic way of expression of its own.

Please check www.21portraits.blospot.com for the Catwalk Portraits itinerary program and dates. The itinerary exhibition program includes several cities in the UK, Spain, France and Switzerland between the end of 2010 and the first quarter of 2011. For the second and third quarters of 2011, the artist plans to tour in Germany and the USA.

For the physical display of 21 Portraits across Europe, the artist is currently doing a search for exhibition spaces in galleries, cultural centres or artist’s associations interested in hosting this 21 Portraits itinerary exhibition. Morwen offers them a very interesting deal in return: an exchange of exhibitions venues, where the gallery would be invited as her guests to perform an exhibition in Barcelona.

Collaborations and International Day of Painting Project

Morwen is a member of the DIP (International Day of Painting) association’s Board of Directors (http://diainternacionaldelapintura.blogspot.com). The DIP association is a collective of painters and other visual artists. The DIP headquarters are based in Barcelona. This association is dedicated to promoting the creation by the UNESCO of a World International Day of Painting, similarly to the World Book Day. The DIP association also leads, organizes and supports different art projects, events and exhibitions, locally in Spain and in other countries. The Catwalk Portraits event is sponsored by DIP.

Press Release in Barcelona

(In Spanish)

Comunicado de prensa

“21 Portraits”, una innovadora combinación de retratos y espectáculo para esbozar la personalidad: Inauguración en Barcelona

Día y lugar de la inauguración de la exposición de arte 21 Portraits:

Jueves, 2 Diciembre 2010, 19:30h.

Biblioteca de la Tecla Sala. Av. de Josep Tarradellas i Joan, 44. L´Hospitalet. Metro: Torrassa (linea 1).

Contacto: Alicia Murcia, alias Morwen. Teléfono: +34697326630.

Email: morwen24ncp@gmail.com. Blog: www.21portraits.blogspot.com

21 Portraits es un proyecto de investigación sobre nuestra percepción de la gente que nos rodea. Éste proyecto se materializa en una serie de 21 retratos (“portraits” en inglés). Como material de experimentación, la artista internacional Alicia Murcia (alias Morwen) utiliza el rostro de un individuo en concreto (el actor Canadiense Kiefer Sutherland) para explorar y representar su personalidad mediante diferentes e innovadoras fórmulas creativas. Además de la clásica representación en 2 dimensiones, estas fórmulas incluyen exposiciones itinerantes internacionales, trabajos en 3 dimensiones donde el público puede interactuar con la obra.

Además de la presentación de los 21 retratos, y únicamente durante el día de la inauguración, la artista presentará una obra en 3 dimensiones interactiva, con la que el público podrá “jugar” y “experimentar” con la realización de un retrato en 3 dimensiones guiados por la artista.

La idea clave del proyecto 21 Portraits es que posee vida propia, y se reinventa a sí mismo constantemente, evolucionando y explorando siempre nuevas formas de representar el rostro.

Uno de los elementos que hacen de esta exposición algo atractivo, único y divertido a la vez es su componente performance, ya que la artista se mostrará el día de la inauguración por primera vez en público vestida con un traje muy especial. Este traje es sí mismo una novedosa propuesta de expresión artística llamada “Pasarela de Retratos”. Pasarela de Retratos es una combinación única de la clásica concepción de una exposición de arte con una actuación teatral o performance. Con esta propuesta, la artista une físicamente sus retratos en lienzo a la tela del vestido, y va por tanto “vestida” con su propia obra. Pasarela de Retratos es un proyecto concebido para promocionar y difundir 21 Portraits en diferentes ciudades de diferentes países, con dos claros objetivos: 1) dar a conocer este original modo de “vivir” y “vestir” el propio arte, de una forma dinámica, itinerante y “móvil” paseando por la ciudad; y 2) traer a las personas que no puedan asistir a la exposición por vivir en otra ciudad la oportunidad de contemplar una parte de la obra presentada en la exposición “estática” de 21 Portraits en Barcelona.

El vestido de Pasarela de Retratos está realizado por Carmela Rosciano, diseñadora italiana residente en Barcelona. Tiene una estructura inspirada en “Las Meninas” de Velázquez y está diseñado para servir de soporte a una selección de los 21 retratos que la artista presenta en la exposición. La intención de la Pasarela de Retratos es captar la mirada los transeúntes y despertar su curiosidad en esta forma tan innovadora e inusual de exponer y vivir el arte. De hecho, la artista propone esta combinación de pintura y performance como una expresión artística en sí misma, buscando siempre la interacción de la gente, tanto paseando por la calle, como en un museo, una cafetería, o en el metro. Morwen presentará Pasarela de Retratos unos días después en otras ciudades Europeas para promocionar el proyecto 21 Portraits, empezando en Londres el 11 Diciembre 2010, donde realizará un paseo por los puntos más turísticos de la ciudad.