Pan~// Catwalk
From worn out denim jacket to extravagant glitter dress. Our clothes are an expression of who we are, want to be, and sometimes have to be. What does that ‘second skin’ tell about us?
Zwermers has been working since 2018 on an ongoing artistic project: Pan~// Catwalk, about clothing and identity. Those two things are closely related. Consciously and unconsciously, we shape ourselves – every day – by what we wear. We are continuously watched and interpreted by others. Zwermers is fascinated by the transformative power of that ‘second skin’ and works cross-disciplinary and interactively on all kinds of manifestations of this project, live performances in various variations and compositions, (interactive) installations and a video work.
Performance
With two performers, a violinist and a never-ending row of outfits, Zwermers pays tribute to the colorful and versatile human being. You will be immersed in a never-ending stream of clothing changes supported by a one-man orchestra with violin and loop station, inspired by composers such as Hauschka and Philip Glass.
Pan~// Catwalk plays with the human tendency to label everything we see, the performance stimulates and undermines that urge. By continuously putting on and taking off outfits, an enumeration of all kinds of people is created. In doing so, we do not pass judgment on the different types of people, but show the fluidity of our identity by means of incessant clothing changes.
‘Pan~// Catwalk makes you wonder about how clothes express identity and proves that getting dressed and undressed can be sufficient to create fascinating theatre’ Oerol daily newspaper 2019
Videowork & Photobooth
Identity is a fluid concept with many sides, and is, moreover, of all of us. Zwermers, in collaboration with Jostijn Ligtvoet, has created a photobooth in which they capture people in all kinds of guises. This project started during The Self Design Academy at MU Artspace in Eindhoven, where the work of Zwermers was shown in the autumn of 2020. This resulted in a motley collection of beautiful people. The portraits have been processed by filmmaker Marike Verbiest in a kaleidoscopic videowork. This videowork is growing and may take the form of Koyaanisqatsi-like proportions where inhabitants from all over the world find their place.