Fiac 2018 Grand Palais, Paris. Mendes Woood

Fiac 2018 Booth B08 18 – 21/10 2018 Grand Palais Paris, France Nina Canell, Brief Syllable (Truncated), 2017, subterranean cable fragments, 23 × 65 × 23 cm +  Paulo Nazareth Moinho de Vento / Windmill 16/10 2018 2pm – 7pm Jardin des Tuileries Mendes Wood DM is pleased to present Paulo Nazareth's performance that features 13 immigrants walking through the streets of Paris. Along their route, they turn manual coffee grinders to make coffee powder. The movement of their arms is a metaphor for the moving engines of the world and is a direct reference to immigrant labor, which historically contributed to the construction of our contemporary social structure. As it falls to the floor, the coffee powder leaves a trail. The wind spreads the powder and its aroma across the urban landscape. The smell of coffee triggers an affective memory that cannot override the historical memory of these 13 people. Within a single grain of coffee — a commodity traded for centuries by colonizers through slave labor – Nazareth explores a world of affects and experiences of immigrant history. Paulo Nazareth, Moinho de Vento / Windmill, 2018, performance Neïl Beloufa Occidental 18/10 2018 7pm MK2 Beaubourg The mood is heated. Demonstrations are taking place across France, also in front of the Paris hotel where an Italian named Giorgio is booking the bridal suite for him and his boyfriend Antonio. Hotel manager Diana doesn’t trust them and calls the police to get rid of the odd couple. Italians? Homosexuals? Criminals? In the charged atmosphere of the Hotel Occidental, little is needed for initial suspicions to be aroused. While street battles rage outside and a politician tries to play down the situation in a TV interview, everyone inside attempts to turn things to their own advantage. This leads to faith in the security camera, absurd dialogues and mad conclusions, fainting spells and an explosive showdown complete with fervent gestures. The music provides the suspense, aside from the schmaltzy Italian love song. Art prints comment on the action, referencing the history of civilisation from Napoleon’s military campaigns to Warhol’s banana. The 70s look of the lobby, which evokes the set of a boulevard play, turns out to be the setting for a comedy shaped by the current social climate. Everything is fake here, including love. Or is it? Neïl Beloufa, Occidental, 2018, film, 73' São Paulo Brussels New York www.mendeswood.com facebook.com/mendeswooddm @mendeswooddm