LOCUS and LATERNA are collaborating in exploring the spiritual in contemporary art as well as researching the spiritual in art that unfolded during the early 1900s in Europe. CoSA – Concerning the Spiritual in Art will take shape as performance, drawing, photography and artist-books.

The project will be initiated in Athens during Documenta 14 opening week in collaboration with The Norwegian Institute at Athens, where we will hold a performance, an artist talk and launch artist books exploring the subject of the spiritual in contemporary art praxis.

Later this year CoSA will present various events at among others the Venice Biennale opening week, in Hammerfest during Dansefestival Barents and in St. Petersburg.

Photo: André Wulf/ Dreiemont as for CoSA – Concerning the Spiritual in Art by LATERNA and LOCUS

LATERNA was established in 2011. As a nomadic porous unit, based in Oslo, Inger-Reidun Olsen and Marianne Skjeldal, both choreographers and performers, collaborate through various formats within performance, dealing with materials, objects, sound and actions in relation to our artistic research, performative and spiritual practices. www.laternalaterna.org

LOCUS is an artist and curator collective and independent art space.
 As a nomadic and fluctuating entity Locus produce exhibitions and presents different artists in various locations nationally and internationally.
 Based in Oslo at Grünerløkka Lufthavn, Locus has a studio/showroom and hosts various events.
 Since 2009 Locus publishing has produced 3 books and will now invite select artists to create individual artists books working with the CoSA theme. Locus was established in 2006 by Thale Fastvold and Tanja Thorjussen and has recently exhibited in cities such as Stavanger, Miami, Oslo, New York, St.Petersburg and Medellín in Colombia. www.locusart.org

CoSA aims to channel and interpret the spirit of places (Genius Loci) into our artworks and performances and explore sites with spiritual reference or history by re-creating lost rituals and creating new artworks. 
With performative situations and séances at selected sites we will share our work in Athens (GR), Hammerfest (NO), Vadsø (NO), St Petersburg (RU) and Monte Verità (CH) 2017-18. The performances will include materials, objects, sound, movement and actions in relation to each place. Through our collaboration we merge performative- and visual arts traditions and share knowledge and experience from each practice.

The project will culminate in creating a publication through inviting external theorists, art scholars and artists to write alongside our own reflections. Our aim is to contextualize the spiritual in contemporary art while also relating the project to Wassily Kandinskys’ publication “Concerning the spiritual in art” (1911) and other artists of that time period.

The project is supported by the Norwegian Institute at Athens, the Norwegian Art Council, and Fond for lyd og bilde.

LOCUS and LATERNA present:
CoSA – Concerning the Spiritual in Art The Norwegian Institute at Athens
Thursday April 6th 19.00
Performative event/artist talk with:
Thale Fastvold, Inger-Reidun Olsen, Marianne Skjeldal and Tanja Thorjussen

 Book launch of artist books by:  Merete Joelsen Aune, Daniel Slåttnes & Sara Rönnback