Please join PICA + ArtsLink International Fellow / artist in residence Ashot Danielyan (Uzbekistan) with Reese Bowes (Portland) in their presentation of “Lessons of decay.” This is a work in progress created during an ArtsLink International Fellowship in Portland, OR. Footage from this short film was shot in Uzbekistan and in the US with live recording sessions for the soundtrack made at the N M Bodecker Foundation. The November 6 virtual event will include introductions from the artists, the premiere of “Lessons of decay,” and a brief Q&A with the audience. This event is free to attend and will include Zoom AI captioning. 

Project Statement:

The spiral of time has achieved its highest point and now obviously falling down. “Lessons of decay” captures the moments of the fading reality—its beauty and ugliness—in order to observe and analyze this specific quality of time.

The story divides into three parts:

1) Memory of water is a story of Aral, a place that used to be a sea just a few decades ago and turned into a lifeless desert because of anthropogenic factors. Despite all that it has been through, some people still live in Aral. Its landscape keeps the memory of the water.

2) Last dance of the fly is a contemporary dance performance made by Uzbek ballerina Cristine Borzova. This is a symbolic story of escapism for dreamers who are caught in the web of reality.

3) City liquidators questions who plays the main role in the game—the city, or those who built it. The city is a living organism that, for some reason, rejects some of its people.

Supported by CEC ArtsLink, the N M Bodecker Foundation, and Stelo Arts and Culture Foundation