avantgardeners productions
OUR INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION GROUP IS EMERGING AND GROWING ALONGSIDE THE WORK OF LIVIA RITA. EMBODYING THE CONCEPT OF A ‘SWAMP’, WE ARE AMORPHOUS, FLUID, AND SOFT.
Our aims are:
To explore and experiment with new and progressive ways of thinking and creating in the ways that we work
To explore what it means to be independent in the current music / art world
To find sustainable ways of working in an ecology-focused approached
To realise ambitious art projects that are as transformative to the audience as they are to the performers
To build community around that work that we do
To organise and build on participatory formats, such as workshops
To find new ways to exhibit and perform transdisciplinary work, including practices in dance, pop, music, fashion, and visuals
To thoughtfully craft and build a sustained network both nationally and internationally of venues, curators, festivals and artists
To thoughtfully craft new and expanding relationships with press outlets, magazines, radio stations etc. in order to continuously reach new audiences
To commit to the creation of a supportive and inclusive environments wherever make or perform work
To become a sustainable and independent production group based around principles of skill-sharing and flexibility
Bündner Rigi atelierhaus & Artist Residency
The Avantgardeners Productions are running an artist Residency & Atelierhaus in the Bündner Alps.
Bündner Rigi serves as an open space for inspiration and collaboration, inviting other artists and collectives to generate artistic exchanges, frequently rotating different bands and artists. Coming together amidst the mountains our goal is to simultaneously activate this space through a curated programme of workshops and concerts.
Bündner Rigi is also the home for the creative endeavours of Livia Rita and the Avantgardeners Studio, with a music studio and a visual arts atelier space allowing them to explore the diverse qualities of visual creation.
By running a pop-up cafe in the building’s dining room or “Gasttube” during the main tourist season, the community project becomes alive, encouraging exchanges between the locals, tourists and resident artists, redefining our sense of community.
Our current & past Avantgardeners:
Ellora
Our marketing witch, whose practice also revolves around community building, workshops, interactive formats and exchange.
Images below: 1. location scouting in Athens, 2. flyering in Edinburgh, 3. never without a headpiece, 4. grooming the flowers for the flower shoes (ArtFashion piece for the shows), 5. on residency in Athens, 6. doing social media whenever wherever
Steph
Our creative production witch is hidden behind all our creative endeavours helping with the booking and organising of our performances and with coordination of Bündner Rigi residency space.
Eirini
Our Balkan sea shaman works around community building, managing diverse communications and graphics for the Avantgardeners, Bündner Rigi and our upcoming film project.
Kasia
Our poet of softness is responsible for the concept and process development for our projects focusing mainly on German projects and our upcoming film.
Pia
Another swampy member of our team is Pia; a producer and researcher working across England and Germany, with a special interest in posthuman ecologies.
Ann-Leonie Niss
Our curator for the Gang of Witches Dance company swings between Germany and Bern animating all the element of our productions.
Fiona
Fiona is a passionate researcher, writer and cultural worker working on collaborative modes of working and the complex entanglements between the human and more than human. She provides the Avantgardeners her knowledge and writing ingeniuty on themes around ecofeminism, care and ecological urgencies.
Lisa
Lisa is a dancer extraordinaire, working as a dancer for several companies. As such she brings the perspective of the active performer into the fold of the production process. She has a range of superpowers, like forging texts and applications, and joins us during off-times from dance projects.
Livia Rita
Livia Rita has learnt by doing. Having begun her practice independently, she has learned through her failures, and now enjoys working in collaboration and with a community, building up and growing a team around her.
Valerie
Valerie writes our beautiful texts, with a refreshing understanding of how we work. She supported the production process in Switzerland, having produced our Sesselilift performance ritual in Toggenburg. Whenever a creature falls sick, she picks up the baton, puts on the ArtFashion and dances in their place.