SANG NOIR is a conceptual fashion project. The first in Sang Noir series is Tools for civil disobedience project, an array of conceptual tools for demonstration, expression of opinion and revolt. Responding to a development of systems of control over demonstrators, Tools for disobedience reflects presumed stagnation of systems for demonstrators and builds utopian models for individuals to communicate their protest. Tools for civil disobedience researches and promotes existing protest strategies, documents them and recycles existing ideas into new utopian realities. Each Tool is an utopian object in itself. Accompanied by information and documentation of reasons for its possible use, it becomes a situation in which socio-political realities are faced with imagination and creative potential of each individual.

CURATOR'S NOTE:
“Who needs a world view?” This panel discussion caused a big rush during the 11th International Istanbul Biennial of Contemporary Art. There were very few visitors from Moscow, though one can easily find links to these reports in many Moscow blogs. Wide international recognition of socially engaged, critical art involves our capital only marginally. Pompous imported shows by celebrities from the international art scene like Claire Fontaine raise a great wave of interest that is not being further sustained. That’s why GMG Gallery looks exactly to young, progressive art, while shaping its new exhibition policy and putting the gallery on the map of Moscow and the entire world. The message of the participants of the gallery's projects gains great importance. The gallery's public identity is to be built up on this basis. This message must first of all reveal problems and critical side of today. Of course, this kind of message can hardly be produced «by order». The artist's previous works or possible potential must indicate progressive world view. That's the criterion for the project participants.

The idea behind FQ-Test project (freedom quotient test) sends us back to Guattari’s and Foucault’s philosophy, but only in part. Freedom quotient is an estimation of a possible freedom level in modern societies. This estimation is employed by the authorities to define the sufficient level of control inside every specific group. In this exhibition this phrase acquires a new color. We combine works by young progressive artists from Russia, USA, Eastern Europe and Georgia (CIS) in one exhibition to demonstrate differences and similarities of that quotient in art around the world, in joint cultural space. Thus, we manage to show the universal character of the language of art chosen by Russian artists and, correspondingly, the universal and international character of the gallery’s new exhibition policy.

Title of the project already includes an important philosophical reference for the professional community. This reference is justified by critical message in the artists' works. Some of the participants have already been recognized on the global sсale, but still, they are young enough to be able to work in different contexts. Many of the selected artists took part in the most important biennials all around the world, from Istanbul to Havana. Some of them have big museum shows behind. Authors of this project work with absolutely different media: objects, videos, collages, painting and even performance art. One of the main goals of this project is to create a motley and dynamic picture of here and now.

Nine participants of the exhibition will calculate the freedom coefficients according to their intestinal necessities. Ksenia Peretrukhina will show “Not to Be Barbie” film about modern woman’s dependence on the media image of a perfect body, Vikenti Komitski will bring together continents and geopolitical borders in his collage “Together Again” (this work was mentioned by the national Bulgarian BAZA Award for contemporary art). Exploring subcultural problems, Alina Gutkina will recreate the wall covered with underground graffiti artists’ works - a symbol of “otherness”. This wall was previously situated in Gutkina’s own flat and became one of the reasons for eviction and supervision from law enforcement authorities. Arseniy Zhilyaev will address the problem of human rights activism in historical context with the help of his installation “Vera’s fourth dream” in which he will show research data concerning development of utopian ideas of the 19th century women and the concepts that define their modern colleague’s work. Lado Darakhvelidze continues to develop his project that was shown at this year’s biennial in Istanbul. In a series of paintings called “New State Symbol: Star” the artist analyzes attempts to erase and rewrite state history, paranoid claim of the official authorities to create brand new independent state identity. American artist Lisi Raskin teaches us through her art to stop being afraid of comprehending the possibility to love A-bomb, paraphrasing Stanley Kubrik. Yakov Kazhdan’s new project “I wash my hands” deals with the feeling of guilt and refusal to take up social responsibility in everyday common rituals. Anton Ginzburg employs symbols of occult medieval rituals revised by pop-culture and raises issues of true place of history in modern society accroached by market relations. Slovenian artists Neja Tomšič and Martin Bricelj keep working on their research of western sociocultural space from the perspective of artists from Eastern Europe. In “Sang Noir: Tools for public disobedience” they develop an ironic clothing brand specifically for the activists, while considering all particularities of this kind of work and the latest fashion design trends.On the basis of this cross-section, artists from five different countries will create a joint critical cultural space, presenting the results of their personal research. Freedom coefficient test in European, American and Russian art environment will let the viewer understand the abilities of young contemporary artists and the real level of their artistic responsibility.

The exhibition concept also implies quite an ambitious claim for a new level of freedom in the established circle of Moscow businessmen and collectors. The gallery makes a step towards new global trends in contemporary art which have actively asserted their positions during the last decade and which have been totally ignored by Moscow gallerist community.

Andrey Parshikov, curator