KAPUTT: The Academy of Destruction

26 – 29 October 2017, 11am – 6pm. Free. Drop in anytime, no booking required.

More info on the Tate site

View a range of documentation and responses to the project here.

KAPUTT: The Academy of Destruction, 2017

Dedicated to Gustav Metzger 1926-2017

“We are not supposed to speak too loud, to write on walls, to eat too much sugar, to tear our schoolbooks apart, to smash the china, to cut ourselves, to step out of line. We are not supposed to destroy anything. We are supposed to be productive and creative and safe. Children, adults, all of us. Strangely, while we try hard to be good, we see all kinds of things around us being destroyed. So, who decides what is destruction and what is not? Who has permission to destroy?” Sibylle Peters, Theatre of Research.

KAPUTT: The Academy of Destruction explores these questions through a transgenerational team of six children and six adult artists as equal members. They will experiment, think and act together and share their practices, experiences and concepts of destruction in six public sessions at Tate Exchange (see below for details of sessions).

Visitors are invited to take a trip through the Academy’s facilities: from its Reception to its Library, and on to its Assembly Hall where they will watch the members of the Academy in action. Visitors will then be encouraged to create a research assignment in the Academy’s Common Room and receive their very own diploma.

Together, academicians and visitors will work towards a Transgenerational Manifesto of Destruction. Because, let’s admit it, children and artists share a lust for destruction, whether its letting off fireworks, crash-testing or throwing each others cell phones against the wall. Live Art in particular has experimented with destruction from its very beginnings. Can we see destruction in a different way if we look at it through the lens of Live Art? Will we be able to see that destruction is not only about violence, hatred and rage, but that there is more to it? Together, we will try to reclaim destruction as a cultural strategy, that can be marvellous, manifold, careful and mindful.

KAPUTT’s academicians are Sibylle Peters, Heike Roms, Zoe Laughlin, Martin O’Brien, Malik Nashad Sharpe, Ansuman Biswas, Sam (Jazsam), Rubie (Gurrubie), Splendour & Najiba (Splenjiba), Tolu (Principal Tolu th G.O.A.T.), Ruqiya (R.P.H.D.) and Chese (Red Pool). The academicians are supported by the KAPUTT faculty members Hester Chillingworth, Katharina Duve, Zainab (Fidget Zalla) and Tyrell (the acrobatic zombie killer).

KAPUTT Schedule of Public Sessions

Thursday 26 October

11am. First session: in which all members and visitors step through a painting made of holes into the Assembly Hall, where our Principal, Tolu (Principal Tolu th G.O.A.T.), will talk about children and adults having equal rights in this Academy. Then Sibylle Peters from Theatre of Research will invite members and visitors to take part into an interactive lecture and discussion to agree on the big questions The Academy wants to answer. After these questions are written on the wall, Ruqiya (R.P.H.D.), the Kickboxing Philosopher, will read her work on the history of destruction to the assembly.

2.30pm. Second session: in which Heike Roms presents her performance lecture Crash! Bang! Wallop! about destruction in art. Then members and visitors will be invited to take part in performing the score Killing The Books by Milan Knizak. The first day will end with a political discussion hosted by Splendour and Najiba (Splenjiba). They have prepared statements about destruction, money and politics in London, which will be discussed by members and visitors.

Friday 27 October

11am. Third session: which will start with the top five fidgets to drive adults crazy presented by Zainab (Fidget Zallab). After that Ansuman Biswas will guide members and visitors through a meditation in which we will try to destroy our egos. Ansuman will then present his brand new composition for broken cello and bow saw. Rumour has it, that everyone, members and visitors, will have a chance to join in.

2.30pm. Fourth session: in which Zoe Laughlin will give a lecture demonstration about the destruction of matter inspired by the Argos catalogue. After exploring a range of potentially hazardous materials and making processes, the second day will end with a workshop on anger relief lead by Rubie (Gurrubie).

Saturday 28 October

11am. Fifth session: which is about collective desires and will be guided by Malik Nashad Sharpe (aka Marikiscrycrycry) who will teach us how to tear down worlds and build new ones through dance and choreography. This is also about HipHop. After that Chese (Red Pool) and Sam (Jazsam) will present the eleven best scenes of destruction in animé and computer games.

2.30pm. Sixth session: which will start with a sportive intermezzo: Sam (Jazsam), Raquia (R.P.H.D), the Kickboxing Philosopher, and Tyrell (the acrobatic zombie killer) will demonstrate destructive moves in taekwondo, kickboxing and acrobatics. After that Martin O’Brien, the undead member of faculty, will talk about what to learn from rotten cabbage, and invite members and visitors to take part into an action, in which mouthfuls of edible material will be spat into vitrines. Finally, members of faculty will discuss the outcomes of The Academy

Sunday 29 October

12.00. On Sunday, the faculty of The Academy will not be in session. Instead the Transgenerational Video Manifesto of Destruction, filmed throughout the previous three days, will be presented in the Assembly Hall followed by an open discussion hosted by Shorty (a deconstructed child persona created by artist Hester Chillingworth).

The Academy of Destruction’s Library provides an opportunity to learn more about some of the artists and artworks who have worked with ideas of destruction and contains materials drawn from LADA’s Study Room.

Check out the Kaputt shelf on our online store Unbound for discounts on destruction related books.

Credits

KAPUTT forms part of LADA’s contribution to the Collaborative Arts Partnership Programme (CAPP) supported by Creative Europe Programme of the European Union.