Núria Font. Cosmogonia del moviment is an exhibition that pays tribute to Núria Font, a pioneer of video dance in the Spanish State who played a decisive role in breaking down barriers between the visual arts, technology and dance. Her numerous interests and concerns can be seen not just in her creative work (video art, video dance, video for the stage, documentaries) but also in the part more closely linked to production (festivals, TV programmes and research platforms) as well as in the field of education. Núria was one of this country’s great professionals, someone who selflessly and generously encouraged meetings and long-lasting collaborations in the worlds of dance and the visual arts and in the alternative spaces and structures that are still open to ongoing experimentation and freedom. Many of the artistic collectives that are still around owe their raison d’être to Núria's intuition. In fact, if we are to approach the history of dance, video art and electronic art in this and some American countries, we need to explore Núria's universe.

She embarked on her career in Barcelona rather prematurely back in the 1980s, by joining the Nou-Servei de Vídeo Comunitari Video Collective, where she got to know many of the most prolific creators of the time. Before she became involved in the world of dance she directed documentaries for the TV stations TV3, TVE and Barcelona TV. Gradually she began to express an interest in body and performance practice, especially dance, a language that came to captivate her over the years. Proof of that can be seen in many of the audio-visual works that the big contemporary-dance companies performed with her.

Working alongside the choreographer Àngels Margarit she created pieces such as Subur 305, Ritual Geogràfic and Estances. With Cesc Gelabert she worked on the installation Akeronte and with the Mal Pelo dance group she not only created several works, such as Ixa Paula, Canaan o Bach, she also produced a documentary on the group. From 1984 to 2003 she was in charge of running the Mostra de Videodansa festival, which promoted the introduction of several video-dance programmes in museums and art centres. She directed the Video Space in the Santa Mònica Art Centre for eight years and ran electronic arts and video-creation biennials from 1998 to 2002. From 2003 she directed VAD, the Girona International Video and Digital Arts Festival.

As a collaborator of the CaixaForum media library on video-dance programmes, Núria was also responsible for the activities of NU2, a non-profit association which focused on the study and creation of audio-visual and body works. She also organised the Territoris Dansa programme for the Catalan TV channel Canal 33 and the research laboratories run by the Mal Pelo group, whom she collaborated closely with at their centre, L’animal a l’esquena. In 2009, she was awarded the National Dance Prize.

Despite her serious, risqué and compelling career, the importance of her work never received the recognition it merited, above all if we bear in mind the lack of institutional backing for creating and producing her projects.

This exhibition is therefore an attempt to pay tribute to her, although its main aim is to highlight the need for supporting and preserving her legacy.

Curator: Imma Prieto

Coordination: Olga Sureda i Tai Lomas

Design: Do the print

Assembly: GAMI SCP

Organize & produce: Arts Santa Mònica – Departament de Cultura

Collaborate: LOOP Barcelona & Mercat de les Flors