What do Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein and Erick Beltrán have in common? CUMBIA! Find out how Quantum Physics and Cumbia, a traditional Latin American musical tradition, inspire each other.

14-19 year olds interested in science, music, dance or all three are invited to join artist Erick Beltrán for an online workshop exploring all of the above and more!

The workshop will be on Zoom, Wednesday 21st April, 4–6pm.

Inspired by Erick’s lively in-car Cumbia music, theory and poster installation in taxis around the city, participants will explore and create their own Cumbia music and lyrics, seeing how science and art go hand in hand. A great chance to meet one of the artists of Liverpool Biennial 2021 and learn from Beltráns vast experience in this exciting musical tradition!

For Who?

• For young people in the age range of GCSE to Undergraduate level, this creative workshop and presentation is aimed at people beginning to develop their creative routes.
• 14-19 year olds interested in science, music, dance or all three young people interested in music, lyric making, science and art.

What?

Erick Beltrán explores relationships of power that exists between the editing process and the construction of what we refer to as knowledge. For the Liverpool Biennial, Erick Beltran will work with young artists in writing and mixing up music – specifically Cumbia rhythms. The workshop will look at the intersection of music, dancing and how to become aware of our own movement, possession and quantum physics. Erick wants to remind us of the power of music and dancing in the construction of our selfhood and collective experience.

The workshop will include:

• A short introduction to Erick Beltrán’s work and his practice
• The basics of Cumbia music and dancing, and how this links to physics, the beyond and the forces of the universe
• Explore the images and theories that Beltran uses in his work and how they relate to you
• Explore the meaning behind Cumbia lyrics and write your own, contributing to a group Cumbia track!

Outcome?

The session will be an immersive and exciting experience with an artist from The Stomach and the Port, learning about a specific culture and physics through short, self-led activities and finally creating your own section to a collective piece, which will be sent out afterwards.

Meet one of the artists of Liverpool Biennial 2021, The Stomach and The Port. Find out more Erick Beltrán for this year's Biennial.

The 'artist presentation' part of the session will include:

An introduction to Liverpool Biennial and how we work with international contemporary artists, collectives and practices.

An introduction to Erick Beltrán's practice, project for Liverpool Biennial 2021 and the journey taken to form a creative career.

A discussion with the students and young people, allowing participants to explore their own ideas and interests, including focus on current study. Thoughts and advice will be offered.

The 'workshop' part of the session will include:

A creative exercise in doing, making or thinking that will teach participants more about the host artist’s practice.

An opportunity for attendees to develop either a skill, idea, process or even just time to think in a creative or contemporary way.

The overall session should leave attendees with things to consider, potential actions or ways to respond to their own personal creative journey.

About the Artist, Erick Beltrán

Erick Beltrán (b. 1974, Mexico City, Mexico) lives and works in Barcelona, Spain. Beltrán analyses and reflects on the mechanisms of thought systems, specifically the relationship of power that exists between the editing process and ways of constructing knowledge. Working with diverse media, such as publication, lecture-performance and installation, Beltrán experiments with the link between public art and diverse graphic languages, investigating the museum, library and the archive as forms of knowledge.

Project for Liverpool Biennial 2021

Erick Beltrán presents graphical drawings at Lewis's Building and corresponding sound pieces in taxi cabs around Liverpool. Beltrán’s work revolves around his interpretation of forms and figures, which is informed by his research into the intersection between multiple paradigms – Cumbia music, proprioception, quantum physics, the primordial state, the psychopomp and collective psyche. Hinged on his deconstruction of Cumbia, Beltrán brings to the fore that there are multiple ways of being in the world beyond the conventional understanding of the individual. Here, the existence is interpreted by the body through ripples and rhythm – pulling and drawing people in as though they are possessed. Once the unit is overflowed with a multi-layered presence, it transforms into a state that is visually a kin to a kaleidoscopic pattern. Different types of ontological frameworks and velocities are central to this narrative, including our perception of frequency, harmonics, bodily knowledge and dream states.

www.liverpoolbiennial2021.com

IMPORTANT

*Please only register if you are aged between 14 - 19 year olds, always seek parental consent for attending online events.

*Schools, teachers and adults are welcome to sign up on behalf of a child they are enrolling.

*Participants are expected to adhere to our online event Code of Conduct. We will be kind, respectful and patient towards each other in a positive and supportive environment. Abusive actions or language will not be tolerated.

Accessibility Requirements

We aim to make our online workshops and events as accessible as possible, however if you require any additional access needs, please do contact us at learning@biennial.com