Parasol Public: A place to live when we are old: Ana Gallardo

Parasol Public: A place to live when we are old
A public art project in collaboration with Argentinian artist Ana Gallardo

Parasol unit foundation for contemporary art presents A place to live when we are old, an inter-generational, dance-based piece by Ana Gallardo which brings people of all ages together through dance. In the heart of Spitalfields, London, this week-long event in Bishops Square has three mature, amateur dancers from Mexico offering demonstrations of and lessons in danzón, a typical Mexican dance, to members of the public.

Building on the success of Kate Gilmore’s Walk the Line, the inaugural Parasol Public project staged in June 2011, Parasol unit is now collaborating with Argentinian artist Ana Gallardo to realise the site-specific project, A place to live when we are old, which premiered with great success at the 29th São Paolo Biennial in 2010. For its London debut, the piece features three dancers, all in their 70s: Ofelia Martinez Herrera, Marvan Pale and Arnulfo Hernandez Hernandez give presentations of danzón and encourage the public to join in. A place to live when we are old takes place on a purpose-built dance floor in Bishops Square with accompanying music, a site-specific wall drawing and video projection that together create a dynamic social environment.

In Mexico City, where Ana Gallardo lived for many years, the artist absorbed the culture of danzón, popularly danced by senior people in the public squares. A place to live when we are old draws on the social importance and benefit of dance, showcasing sociological concerns surrounding age in modern society. For Gallardo, the project challenges the typically ‘unfavourable image of growing old, often associated with illness, financial constraints and physical or mental decline’. The project’s central themes of hope, community and enjoyment play out through the shared experience of dance.