Luna Nera
Encyclopedia
Luna Nera is a collaborative group of international artists who make site-specific art
works. Members of Luna Nera have exhibited in a number of venues ranging from disused buildings to Tate Britain
.
The organisation was founded in 1997 to create works in response to significant urban sites which have fallen into dereliction.
Some places that Luna Nera have worked in include:
The huge former Midland Grand Hotel at St Pancras Station, London
designed in the Gothic style by Sir George Gilbert Scott and built in 1868-72.
The former Drawing Offices of Harland and Wolff
, Belfast
, once the largest shipyard in the world, where the RMS Titanic was designed and built.
Buildings formerly belonging to the Russian Navy, on Kronstadt
naval base, Saint Petersburg
Russia
.
The Old Colosseum Theatre in Dalston
, east London. This now-derelict structure was a circus space and music hall and one of the first cinemas in London.
A late 19th century factory complex in Obershoeneweide East Berlin
, in the vast former industrial area built by Peter Behrens
for AEG
(This contradicts other parts of Wikipedia showing Peter Behrens first working for AEG in 1907). The whole district fell into economic ruin after 1989.
Artists involved with Luna Nera are the group's founders Gillian McIver
, Valentina Floris, and also Hilary Powell, Julian Ronnefeldt
, Ben Foot. Other artists who work with Luna Nera include Chris Singer, Leo Konigsberg, Nazir Tanbouli, Lennie Lee
, Derek Szteliga, Agnes Domke. Luna Nera has a related group based in Barcelona
and co-operates with group Dirizhable in Russia and Factory-Berlin in Berlin.
Luna Nera is concerned with exploring the conjunction of theory and practice in site-specific/site-responsive work, through a series of projects that also include text, talks and workshops. The group's members are active in writing, debating and presenting critical discourse about site specific art and site response in art.
Site-specific art
Site-specific art is artwork created to exist in a certain place. Typically, the artist takes the location into account while planning and creating the artwork...
works. Members of Luna Nera have exhibited in a number of venues ranging from disused buildings to Tate Britain
Tate Britain
Tate Britain is an art gallery situated on Millbank in London, and part of the Tate gallery network in Britain, with Tate Modern, Tate Liverpool and Tate St Ives. It is the oldest gallery in the network, opening in 1897. It houses a substantial collection of the works of J. M. W. Turner.-History:It...
.
The organisation was founded in 1997 to create works in response to significant urban sites which have fallen into dereliction.
Some places that Luna Nera have worked in include:
The huge former Midland Grand Hotel at St Pancras Station, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
designed in the Gothic style by Sir George Gilbert Scott and built in 1868-72.
The former Drawing Offices of Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries is a Northern Irish heavy industrial company, specialising in shipbuilding and offshore construction, located in Belfast, Northern Ireland....
, Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, once the largest shipyard in the world, where the RMS Titanic was designed and built.
Buildings formerly belonging to the Russian Navy, on Kronstadt
Kronstadt
Kronstadt , also spelled Kronshtadt, Cronstadt |crown]]" and Stadt for "city"); is a municipal town in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal city of St. Petersburg, Russia, located on Kotlin Island, west of Saint Petersburg proper near the head of the Gulf of Finland. Population: It is also...
naval base, Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
The Old Colosseum Theatre in Dalston
Dalston
Dalston is a district of north-east London, England, located in the London Borough of Hackney. It is situated northeast of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London...
, east London. This now-derelict structure was a circus space and music hall and one of the first cinemas in London.
A late 19th century factory complex in Obershoeneweide East Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, in the vast former industrial area built by Peter Behrens
Peter Behrens
Peter Behrens was a German architect and designer. He was important for the modernist movement, as several of the movements leading names worked for him when they were young.-Biography:Behrens attended the Christianeum Hamburg from September 1877 until Easter 1882...
for AEG
AEG
Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft was a German producer of electrical equipment founded in 1883 by Emil Rathenau....
(This contradicts other parts of Wikipedia showing Peter Behrens first working for AEG in 1907). The whole district fell into economic ruin after 1989.
Artists involved with Luna Nera are the group's founders Gillian McIver
Gillian Mciver
Gillian McIver, Canadian artist and writer born in Newcastle-on-Tyne, UK and raised in Vancouver is a writer, curator and film-maker.After studying history and philosophy, she moved to London where, in 1997, she set up an international underground art collective, known as Luna Nera in the abandoned...
, Valentina Floris, and also Hilary Powell, Julian Ronnefeldt
Julian Ronnefeldt
Julian Ronnefeldt, born in Essen, Germany, artist, photographer, veejay. After working as an assistant for photographer' Iver Hansen, in 1990 he became involved in making visuals for concerts in and around Düsseldorf. He moved to London in 1993 where he made visuals for underground parties and...
, Ben Foot. Other artists who work with Luna Nera include Chris Singer, Leo Konigsberg, Nazir Tanbouli, Lennie Lee
Lennie Lee
Lennie Lee is a South African conceptual artist who lives and works in London.-Life and career:Lennie Lee is a British artist born in Johannesburg, South Africa. He moved to the UK in 1960. He was educated at Dulwich college in London before winning a scholarship to study philosophy at Christ...
, Derek Szteliga, Agnes Domke. Luna Nera has a related group based in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
and co-operates with group Dirizhable in Russia and Factory-Berlin in Berlin.
Luna Nera is concerned with exploring the conjunction of theory and practice in site-specific/site-responsive work, through a series of projects that also include text, talks and workshops. The group's members are active in writing, debating and presenting critical discourse about site specific art and site response in art.