Smashing pianos and turning an abandoned building into a musical instrument in Jerusalem
Watch Interrupt This Program's look at the art world of the divided and volatile city.
In Jerusalem, the artist collective Empty House enters abandoned buildings and turns them into venues for art and spaces to push back against the high cost of living.
In the video above, go inside a performance where Empty House turned this particular empty house into a sound installation — "8 hours of demotion sounds" — using the architecture of the building as a musical instrument. Oh yeah, and they smash pianos too.
The members of Empty House say that their group came out of 2011 protests about the high cost of living in Israel, and they "rode in on this feeling" to create a movement of artists who want to transform unused spaces "for anyone who want[s] to take part and help."
Many people left because it was disturbing and very intense, which I think is a good sign.
In Sunday's episode of Interrupt This Program from Jerusalem, see more stories of artists making a space for themselves in this divided and volatile city.
Art as political protest, as a means of survival, as an agent of change, as a display of courage and delight. Interrupt This Program explores art in cities under pressure.
Watch episodes from Moscow and Lagos now, and see Interrupt This Program: Jerusalem this Sunday at 9:00PM on CBC TV.