Awkward Moments is the birth child of music artist Mimi Xu. Xu has always been interested in the relationship between sound, space and scenography, exploring the field of ‘Expanded Cinema’ – a term coined in the mid-1960s by American experimental filmmaker Stan Vanderbeek that describes work both inside and outside of the gallery including live performance, projected pieces, video and a range of media environments. Awkward Moments was born out of this concept, and was first launched in London in May 2017. It has since evolved through diverse performances worldwide; from a multimedia scenographic installation directed by visual artist Carlotta Guerrero and a soundwalk with students at the Oberlin Conservatory, to a choreographed performance in London with the iconic Lindsay Kemp who studied under Marcel Marceau, staged and performed in David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust. The fifth incarnation of the series is an audiovisual collaboration between Xu and multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Maguire premiered at Houghton Festival 2018.
With sound at its core, Awkward Moments is a performance art series that uses mixed media to explore the emotional, philosophical, and metaphysical implications of a lifecycle and the eternal return of it. The essence of the project is to capture the ephemeral nature of live performance and to reflect on various topics from social reality, emotional journey to chimerical narratives. With an emphasis on collaboration, it celebrates diversity by mixing artistic disciplines and sonic practices to create one unified experience. Awkward Moments explores the theory of Eternal Recurrence, probing questions about the cyclical nature of existence, never aiming to repeat, but always returning to the primary concerns of fluidity and transience.
With sound at its core, Awkward Moments is a performance art series that uses mixed media to explore the emotional, philosophical, and metaphysical implications of a lifecycle and the eternal return of it. The essence of the project is to capture the ephemeral nature of live performance and to reflect on various topics from social reality, emotional journey to chimerical narratives. With an emphasis on collaboration, it celebrates diversity by mixing artistic disciplines and sonic practices to create one unified experience. Awkward Moments explores the theory of Eternal Recurrence, probing questions about the cyclical nature of existence, never aiming to repeat, but always returning to the primary concerns of fluidity and transience.