Cluster is proud to present Winnipeg intermedia artist, Freya Olafson performing her seminal work AVATAR at Cluster’s second evening, Resolutions & Irresolutions – Friday, March 25, 8pm @ 318 Ross Ave.
AVATAR explores methods of creating, validating and disseminating one’s identity through the use of technology and the Internet. The work is inspired by the mantra “I post therefore I am”, whereby Internet power users legitimize their existence by documenting their lives and uploading this media to personal webpages and blogs. AVATAR facilitates an inquiry into what encourages us to share and publicize our lives. Nothing is hidden as the work develops, Freya moves intimately through software, opening and closing files on her personal computer and interacting with the built-in camera. The performance inherently becomes a duet with technology as in AVATAR Freya makes use of live video feeds and projections to magnify, manipulate and effectively broadcast persona and image. Since it’s premiere in 2009 as part of Winnipeg’s Contemporary Dancers season, AVATAR has toured to North Carolina, Toronto, Montreal, North Dakota as well as Quito, Manta and Guayaquil in Ecuador. Most recently AVATAR received the “Buddies in Bad Times Vanguard Award for Risk and Innovation” at the 2010 Summerworks Theatre Festival in Toronto. In April 2011, AVATAR looks forward to presentation in Ottawa as part of Prairie Scene organized by the National Arts Center.
Freya Björg Olafson is an interdisciplinary artist who works with video, audio, painting and performance. Her creations have been presented/exhibited nationally as well as internationally at festivals and galleries such as the Plug In Institute for Contemporary Art (Winnipeg), InterAccess Electronic Media Arts Center (Toronto), Dance: made in canada biennial (Toronto), Winnipeg Art Gallery, Núna (now) Festival (Winnipeg, Toronto, Iceland), Groundswell New Music Series (Winnipeg), O.K. Centrum (Linz, Austria), Kling&Bang Galleri (Reykjavik,Iceland), Akureyravaka (Akureyri, Iceland) and Springboard Danse Montréal. Freya began developing AVATAR at Studio 303 (Montreal) during a workshop lead by 2boys.tv (video/performance duo, Montreal) in May 2008, since then the series has benefited from significant time at PAF~Performing Arts Forum (St.Erme-Outre-et-Ramecourt, France), SIM – The Association of Icelandic Visual Artists (Reykjavik, Iceland) and at The Barn with Tedd Robinson of 10 Gates Dancing Inc (Ontario).
As performer and creator, Freya blends 6 years classical training in the Professional Program of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet with the contemporary facility achieved through her completion of the Bachelor of Arts Honors degree in dance from Winnipeg’s School of Contemporary Dancers in affiliation with the University of Winnipeg. She combines her finesse in movement with the directness of her performance art, video and theory studies from the University of Manitoba School of Art and her subsequent completion of a Master of Fine Arts Degree in New Media from the Transart Institute / Donau Universitat in Krems, Austria (Graduated August 2007). During her studies Freya was the recipient of awards/scholarships for her abilities from The Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Friends of The Transart Institute, Canada Iceland Foundation, University of Winnipeg Woman’s Auxiliary, The Imperial Order of Daughter’s of the Empire, and Springboard Danse Montreal among others. Freya was nominated in 2008 by Winnipeg’s School of Contemporary Dancers and in 2009 by Choreographer Stephanie Ballard for The Winnipeg Arts Council Emerging Artist Award “On The Rise”.
As a performer Freya has worked for Winnipeg’s Contemporary Dancers, Trip Dance Company, Adhere & Deny Theatre Company, Gearshifiting Performance Works and Stephanie Ballard. Outside of creating her own work and performing in the work of others Freya is actively involved in the community in curating and teaching. She is a member of the curatorial committee for the nuna (now) Festival and has traveled to Calgary, Iceland and Slovenia to facilitate work for the festival. In 2008 she curated a performance of “1401 IBM – A User’s Manual” a collaboration between dance artist Erna Omarsdottir and composer/musician Johann Johannsson. In 2009 she worked with Kegan McFadden director of Platform Center for Photographic and Digital Arts in Winnipeg to facilitate the presentation of International performance art collective Icelandic
Love Corporation Montreal’s The Discriminating Gentlemen’s Club.
