Catherine Ostraya

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Mycofiltraçao, 2020
Performance/video
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Mycofiltraçao, 2020
Performance/video
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Mycofiltraçao, 2020
Perfromance/Video
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Research for Mycofiltraçao, 2020
Oyster Mycellium/own hair
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Research for Mycofiltraçao, 2020
Oyster Mycellium/own hair
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A found VHS tape, which depicts a home film shot by an elderly Dutch couple going to Canada. The project is based on the tape’s gradual erasure which is displayed live.

With Every Exhale Lost, 2020
Video installation, Variable
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A found VHS tape, which depicts a home film shot by an elderly Dutch couple going to Canada. The project is based on the tape’s gradual erasure which is displayed live.

With Every Exhale Lost, 2020
Video installation, Variable
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An example of my business cards which I distributed for graduation - all the slides are found objects

Business card for graduation - example, 2020
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A Seed in a Bell, 2020
Perfromance/Video
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Preparations for a Peformance of 'A seed in a bell'. In this picture I am viewing the frozen head

A Seed in a Bell, 2020
Performance/video
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In this performance I have made my own radio transmitter, which I use to communicate with passing by cars. This process is a result of my transmitter hijacking the most popular radio station. I use this intervention to broadcast my own radio program about the importance of magic in contemporary society and to ask important questions: such as "who put the starts in the sky?'

Magic Hour, 2020
Perfromance/Video
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A perfromance done as a result of Budapest Interventions in which I temporarily lost all my documents and assumed the identity of a hungarian woman named Petra

Petra, 2019
Performace

I use video or performance as my preferred medium, usually installed with additions of relevant physical objects. Technology plays a part in my work as catalyst or a container for experiences, although it is the personal stories which I prioritize. This approach makes my practice broad, however in my most recent projects I have been looking at the phenomena of time, disintegration, memory and identity. In the process of creating the work I tend to conduct longer investigations on the topic in question, for example my ongoing collection of outdated media containing other people’s memories, and my ongoing experiments with mycelium. I believe that the most important role of the artist is to be receptive to the less visible undercurrents of life, which I try to tap into using curiosity and honesty as my compass.

Curriculum vitae

Education

2015 - 2019

Artscience Den Haag, Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten diploma
2014 - 2015

FAD+ plus foundation program Central Saint Martins diploma

exhibitions

2021

Natural Dependencies Trixie The Hague The Hague, Netherlands Natural Dependencies is a multimedia exhibition about the connectivity of all living things, using mycelium as a metaphor. In the exhibition, we highlight the apparent fragility of relationships around us, both social as well as natural relationships, and also question this apparent division. Many creatures in nature depend on one another – and this has become painfully visible in recent ecological destruction. Oftentimes fungi confuse us and break our definitions of what an individual is. A lot of the time we tend to focus on boundaries rather than our connections, in research as well as in culture. It is socially encouraged to become as independent as possible throughout your lifetime, dependency on another person or object can be seen as a weakness. We think that by acknowledging these moments of connection and how valuable they are, we can become more appreciative of what is around us and have a better sense of belonging. From filtration systems and mushroom inks to the fungal network and a scent inspired by the communication between plants and fungi; all works in the exhibition feature mycelium in one way or the other. The exhibiting artists are Catherine Ostraya, Merle Bergers, Sophie Steengracht & Suzette Bousema. www.trixiethehague.nl/events/natural-dependencies/ Group
2020

The Opening:The Opening Opening Trixie The Hague The Hague, Netherlands Happenings in the art circles, akin to a video feedback loop, are alive yet predictable. For this exhibition, we approach the art world as a feedback loop of inspiration, powered by social energy. Through the networker’s eyes, the world is connected and the whole world is the same. Catherine, Jonas, and Beng sent various performers out and about to explore and record different events, each with a different identity and role within the art world. Cameras were mounted on the performers with various degrees of candidness: such as a GoPro camera mounted on the head, one on a chest, and one hidden from view, broadcasting a more abstract and futile impression of what is going on. The emphasis was placed on the social aspect in which futility is celebrated and encouraged and presented as a reaction to the serious traditions of networking to advance your artistic practice. www.trixiethehague.nl/events/the-opening-the-opening-opening/ Group
2019

Unexpected Smells De Electriciteitsfabriek Den Haag, Netherlands When was the last time you sounded your way through an exhibition or where asked to close your eyes and sniff? We live in an ocular-centric world. At the ArtScience Interfaculty, this is not so. We combine sight, smell, taste, touch and sound non-hierarchically to create multi-dimensional environments which engulf the viewer as a whole. This exhibition is the culmination of the bachelor and master degrees of 17 students of the ArtScience Interfaculty, from all around the world, who open their doors and invite you to participate in their process, to become actively engaged, to be critical, to give feedback. The focus is on the sensorial, the immaterial, the ephemeral, the time-based, the shape-shifting, the hybrid – operating at the intersection between art, science and technology. www.electriciteitsfabriek.nl/agenda/unexpected-smells Group
2018

Opening Credits Grey Space in the Middle Den Haag, Netherlands Third year students from the ArtScience Interfaculty are excited to share their projects from the past year with the public. You will experience the analogue with the digital, the playful with the composed and the familiar with the ambivalent. thegreyspace.net/opening-credits-kabk-artscience/ Group
2018

Sensing the Place Sonic Acts Academy Amsterdam, Netherlands Sensing the Shipyard was a student research project at Damen Shiprepair. Artist Cocky Eek, with several tutors, led this collaboration between ArtScience Interfaculty (KABK) and Sonic Acts Academy. The students were invited to think about different possibilities for sensing a place and to create maps based on their cognition of smell, touch, vibrations, light, sound, etc. As an outcome of their research, they devised an experimental and experiential environment in which visitors embark on a sensing trip based on uncommon approaches to navigating through space. sonicacts.com/2018/sensing-the-place Group

International exchanges/Residencies

2020

Oficinas do Convento Montemor-o-Novo, Portugal In this residency I developed a project "Mycofiltracao" which is an intervention into the natural environment of Montemor-o-Novo, directly influencing the amount of pollution in the local river by using oyster mushroom mycellium. www.oficinasdoconvento.com/
2020

Terra Alta Sintra, Portugal A work period/internship in which I learned hands on management of nature, land and communities through the methods of permaculture. www.terralta.org/
2018

De Fabriek Eindhoven Eindhoven, Netherlands Repetition can create rhythm or make patterns, enhance skill, use it as a method or to erode. Repetition causes consolidation in the hippocampus, resulting in (stronger) memories. It can provide comfort in the shape of habits or traditions. We are patterns recognition machines, they draw are eye and are aesthetically pleasing to us. Repetition can emphasize or desensitize. It can slowly erode the hardest material. Repetition is needed to master new skills and needed to run/swim/cycle the fastest. With repetition you can both lose or gain meaning. It can be a way to relieve stress or a symptom of it. Evolution is repetition with small but potentially significant changes. www.defabriekeindhoven.nl/exhibition/noititeper-artscience-den-haag/
2018

European Affairs: Budapest, MÜSZI Közért Budapest, Hungary European affairs was a part of a cultural exchange between budding artists in the hague and Budapest, organized by the Artscience interfaculty. It consisted of two weeks, after which there were presentation and performances.

Publications

2018

Sonic Acts Academy 2018 Reader Book Sonic Acts Press / Reader / SonicActs.com Mirna Belina Amsterdam, Netherlands sonicacts.com/2018/get-the-sonic-acts-academy-reader-with-an-academy-pass The Sonic Acts Academy aims to unpack the processes of artistic knowledge, with a focus on educational practices and critical examination of knowledge production in the field of art. In keeping with the theme, the Reader is designed by The Rodina, a studio interested in self-reflection, critical design, and the reinvented connections between culture and technology.

Awards and grants

2019

Artscience Award Nomination Artscience Award. KABK. Den Haag, Netherlands A nomination for the award for the best graduates of the Artscience department in 2019.

Secondary art-related activities

2015 - --

VJ-ing On-going