19 a Day, photograph, 2014, collaboration with Shamil Gadzhidadaev
19 a Day is a collaboration with Makhachkala-based wedding photographer, Shamil Gadzhidadaev. On 14 September 2014, we attempted to crash as many weddings as we could, and by the end of the day we had notched up nineteen. There are more than 60 wedding venues in the city. Late spring, summer and early autumn is peak season for weddings, the venues are in use all weekend. I crashed random weddings for this project, pretending to be an invited guest. I congratulated the newlyweds, danced, ate, and, guided by Shamil's professional knowhow and expertise, took standard wedding photographs. Although we intended to document the staging of someone crashing a wedding, we also wanted to document bridal styles – be it a bride in a western-style dress but with a hijab, or perhaps elaborate crowns. What region springs to mind when you glance at these images?
S u p e r T a u s (Untitled 1), web video, 2:16 min., colour, Sound, 2014
The video depicts a child's fantasy, the dream of woman who grew up and lives in a patriarchal society. It is informed by the desire to show the independence of women and to wipe the tears from one's eye in the manner of a superhero. The work was inspired by the video The Adventures of Super Sohrab. (Taus Makhatecheva)
Taus Makhatcheva
* 1983 in Moscow, Russia. Lives and works in Makhachkala, Russia
2016 winner of the renown Kandinsky Prize for contemporary art in Russia; she was also awarded the Future of Europe prize (Museum of Contemporary art, Leipzig, 2014) and the Innovation state prize in contemporary art (2012); holds a BA in Fine Art from Goldsmiths College (London, 2007) and an MA from Royal College of Art (London, 2013). Selected exhibitions include: (In)sidenotes (2015, Uppsala Konstmuseum, Uppsala); Too Early, Too Late. Middle East and Modernity (2015, Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna, Bologna); Untitled... (Native Foreigners) (2014, Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, Moscow); A Walk, A Dance, A Ritual (2014, Museum of Contemporary Art, Leipzig); What? Whose? Why? (2013, Raf projects, Tehran); Story Demands to be Continued (2013, Republic of Dagestan Union of Artists Exhibition Hall, Makhachkala); and Love me, Love me not (2013, 55 Venice Biennial, Venice.
