The photographs from the project TRUST ME were exhibited for the first time within the context of the group exhibition entitled DIS, where the inaugural artists of Art Beyond Sight’s Art and Disability Institute converge their diverse body of work under the banner of dis, three letters that can reverse, revoke, rebuke, rebuff or, perhaps, release social stereotypes.
The artists Gema Álava, Emilie Gossiaux. Annie Leist, Anthony Ptak, Gordon Sasaki and Julia Yepez, redefine “dis” as both a subjective and objective experience. Their personal relationship to disability falls along a broad continuum, as does the relationship of disability to their work. Collectively, they form a cross section of the many ways artists working with and around disability contribute towards broadening conversations on the potential of art.
TRUST ME, an art project by Gema Álava, documented by Jason Schmidt, Leslye Guayasamín and Danee Ramón.
Describing works of art as a museum guide for people who are blind or visually impaired has taught me how to look. With this idea in mind, in 2010 I contacted photographer Jason Schmidt and asked him to document an art project inside two major museums in New York City, where participant’s eyes would be covered with opaque glasses made for the occasion, while I performed one-on-one verbal descriptions of an artwork they could not see.
On May 14th, 2010, eleven participants including visual artists, performers, the manager of education of a major art museum, writers, an art critic, a museum educator and a MFA student, participated in Trust Me. Some of them described their experience as a “rebirth” or as “entering a new world.”
The idea of entering a new world via the suppression of visual information, while allowing the heightening of other senses, is a powerful statement, and more so when this transformation occurs in a museum. Our performances took place in front of the regular visitors and security guards; however, because the event was not advertised, they did not recognize the project as such.
These private interactions in public spaces opened a door that was present during other previous projects—that of not knowing when something is happening even if it is taking place in front of us.
On January 19, 2017, a Spanish version of Trust Me entitled “Confía en Mí” took place inside two art museums in Quito, Ecuador. The project was documented by Ecuadorian artists Leslye Guayasamín and Danee Ramón.
– Gema Álava
Participants of TRUST ME (2010) in New York City: Ellen Fisher, Mayrav Fisher, Jonathan Goodman, Jessica Higgins, Erika Kawalek, Erika Knerr, Alison Knowles, Ferran Martin, J. Morrison, Gordon Sasaki and J.G. Zimmerman. Documented by: Jason Schmidt
Participants of CONFÍA EN MÍ (2017) in Quito: Bln Bike (Belén Jaramillo), Christian Cerda, Edgar Dávila Soto, Ramiro Díez, Reina Victoria Diez, Lisa Khon, Fernando López Guevara, Natalia Luzuriaga, Susana Nicolalde and Renato Reúl Ulloa. Documented by: Leslye Guayasamín and Danee Ramón
SPANISH
TRUST ME (2010) – CONFÍA EN MÍ (2017)
Una experiencia no-visual dirigida por una artista en el interior de museos
Describir obras de arte como guía de museo para personas ciegas o con discapacidad visual me enseñó a mirar. Con esta idea en la cabeza, en 2010 contacté al fotógrafo americano Jason Schmidt y le pedí que documentara un proyecto que realizaría en el interior de dos museos de arte de Nueva York, donde once participantes caminarían del brazo conmigo, con unas gafas opacas hechas para la ocasión, mientras yo describía con palabras obras de arte que ellos no podían ver.
El 14 de mayo de 2010, once participantes (artistas visuales, escritores, críticos de arte, educadores, estudiantes y la directora del departamento de educación de un museo de arte neoyorquino) participaron en Trust Me. Describieron su experiencia como un ¨renacer¨ o ¨la entrada a un nuevo mundo.
La idea de entrar a un nuevo mundo a través de la omisión de información visual -mientras potenciamos otros sentidos- es un concepto importante, especialmente si esta transformación tiene lugar en el interior de un museo. Nuestras performances ocurrieron delante de los visitantes y los guardas de seguridad pero, al no ser anunciado el proyecto, éste no fue reconocido como tal.
Estas interacciones privadas en espacios públicos abrieron una puerta que ya había estado presente durante otros proyectos anteriores: el no saber que algo está ocurriendo, aun cuando este algo lo tenemos delante de nosotros.
El 19 de enero de 2017, la versión de Trust Me en español, titulada ¨Confía en mí¨ tuvo lugar en el interior de dos museos de arte de Quito, Ecuador. El proyecto fue documentado por los artistas ecuatorianos Leslye Guayasamín y Daniel Ramón.
– Gema Álava
Participantes de TRUST ME (2010) en Nueva York: Ellen Fisher, Mayrav Fisher, Jonathan Goodman, Jessica Higgins, Erika Kawalek, Erika Knerr, Alison Knowles, Ferran Martin, J. Morrison, Gordon Sasaki and J.G. Zimmerman. Documentado por: Jason Schmidt
Participantes de CONFÍA EN MÍ (2017) en Quito: Bln Bike (Belén Jaramillo), Christian Cerda, Edgar Dávila Soto, Ramiro Díez, Reina Victoria Diez, Lisa Khon, Fernando López Guevara, Natalia Luzuriaga, Susana Nicolalde and Renato Reúl Ulloa. Documentado por: Leslye Guayasamín y Daniel Ramón