Looking for Paul
Het REDCAT Theater in Los Angeles heeft Wunderbaum uitgenodigd de voorstelling Looking for Paul te maken. Met ‘Paul’ bedoelen we de Amerikaanse hedendaagse kunstenaar Paul McCarthy, van wie een sculptuur op het Rotterdamse Eendrachtsplein staat. Dit werk genaamd Santa Claus, in de volksmond beter bekend als ‘Kabouter Buttplug’, leidde tot heftig protest toen het in 2001 werd onthuld. Oorspronkelijk bedoeld voor op het Schouwburgplein Rotterdam, verhuisde Kabouter Buttplug driemaal alvorens hij op zijn huidige locatie terechtkwam.
In deze performance reist de Nederlandse Inez van Dam samen met Wunderbaum naar Los Angeles om er wraak te nemen op de beroemde ‘ketchupkunstenaar’…
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The REDCAT Theater in Los Angeles has invited Wunderbaum to create the performance ‘Looking for Paul’. “Paul” refers to contemporary American artist Paul McCarthy, of whom one of his sculptures can be found on the Eendrachtsplein in Rotterdam. The name of this work is Santa Claus – more popularly termed as ‘the butt plug gnome’ – and it led to fierce protest when it was unveiled in 2001. It was supposed to be placed on the Schouwburgplein in Rotterdam, but the butt plug gnome moved three times before it found its place at the current location.
In this performance, the Dutch Inez van Dam travels to Los Angeles, together with Wunderbaum, to take revenge on the famous ‘ketchup artist’…
=DE=
Das REDCAT Theater in Los Angeles hat Wunderbaum eingeladen, die Aufführung ‘Looking for Paul’ zu machen. Mit “Paul” meinen wir den amerikanischen zeitgenössischen Künstler Paul McCarthy, von dem eine Skulptur auf dem Eendrachtsplein in Rotterdam steht. Dieses Werk namens Santa Claus, im Volksmund als “Zwerg Buttplug” bekannt, löste heftigen Protest aus, als es 2001 enthüllt wurde. Der ursprünglich für das Schouwburgplein Rotterdam bestimmte Zwerg Buttplug zog dreimal um, bevor er an seinem derzeitigen Standort ankam.
In dieser Performance reist die Holländerin Inez van Dam mit Wunderbaum nach Los Angeles, um sich an dem berühmten “Ketchup-Künstler” zu rächen…
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“Part making-of documentary, part self-admonishing mea culpa, Looking for Paul is a fascinating thing to watch. Its narrative is as gripping as any soap opera, but it airs a host of knotty questions about the possibility and efficacy of arts funding, social democracy and cross-cultural values.”
Matt Trueman (The Financial Times)
“Wunderbaum remind us that the only art worth making is that which disrupts, challenges and tests artists and audiences – sometimes to the limits.”
Lyn Gardner (The Guardian)
“It is a slick, clever production that should not be missed.”
Alex Reeves (Broadway Baby)
“The piece is a highly entertaining, smart critique of pretentious, directionless performances and artists using real people’s stories to further their own self-interests.”
Sally Stott (The Scotsman)
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Credits
BY AND WITH
Walter Bart, Matijs Jansen, Marleen Scholten, Maartje Remmers, Inez van Dam and Daniel Frankl
SET & LIGHT DESIGN
Maarten van Otterdijk
COSTUME DESIGN
Lotte Goos
PRODUCER
Wunderbaum
WITH THE SUPPORT OF
Ministry of Foreign Affairs: The Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Department for Cultural Affairs