Argentine activist and hard-core political performance artist Natacha Voliakovsky joins Asia on the podcast this week.
Natacha begins by sharing why activism and socially-engaged work is central to their artistic practice (1:21). While discussing the importance of the Latin American feminist movement Ni Una Menos, Natacha reflects on the way their personal involvement in protests has shaped their work (04:28). The "fútbol performativity" (6:06) and energy of flag-waving and rallying at protests and marches is absolutely present in Natacha's public performances.
In the second-half of the conversation, Natacha considers the significance of blood in their work (9:07) and describes how they go about preparing for and recovering from intense, high-risk performances (13:02). Walking through the example of their 2022 performance "Abortion is a Life Need," Natacha explains how they assessed the physical and emotional risks of the performance and communicated those risks to audiences and community members (15:40). Finally, Natacha and Asia discuss Natacha's new video installation "the denied body: a refuge of trauma," which opens on Governors Island this September (17:46). In closing, Asia asks Natacha to share what they feel they have been denied (20:12).
Follow Natacha Voliakovsky on Instagram @natachavoliakovsky and on their website natachavoliakovsky.com
You can watch Natacha's work on PerformVu! Head to https://www.performvu.com/
This podcast is produced and edited by Asia Stewart.
Find Asia online @asiastewart and @performvu