MOVING MURALS

An interdisciplinary installation fusing live painting, mural art, dance, circus and theatre.

Moving Murals is an interdisciplinary performance art installation that takes place in public space and invites the public into the art. While creating a new mural, the visual artist simultaneously paints performing artists, dressed in full bodysuits, to become a part of the artwork. Afterwards the installation continues with the performers moving around the space both within and outside of the mural. Through interacting with the mural the dancers create shifting perspectives in the work itself and as they spread out over the urban landscape they expand the artwork’s reach, imprinting it on different objects and imbuing them and the art with expanded meaning. The live painting itself is also a key part of the performance, creating a multi-layered dialogue between visual artist, performers and audience. The concept for each new piece is unique to its location and is created as a collaboration between local visual artists and director/choreographer, with the mural artist proposing a visual concept, and the choreographer working to find ways in which the performer’s bodies can be used as a physical and artistic extension of the work.

The first rendition of Moving Murals was presented as part of the In the Soil Arts Festival (Saint Catharines) in 2018. It was a collaboration between local visual artist Chad McDonald, choreographer Natayu Mildenberger and performers Vanita Butrsingkorn & Emily Hughes.