Image Courtesy of Helena Majewska.
The Parisian cultural hub La Gaîté Lyrique made it their mission to address pressing cultural, social, democratic and climate issues. To put ideas into practice and bring stories to life they created the project “Factory of our Times”. Its aim is to bring artistic creation and social engagement together, empower people and break down barriers. The contemporary factory, located in the heart of the French capital, describes itself as a toolbox for artists, shakers and movers.
For this year’s Nuit Blanche on the 3rd of June 2023, La Gaîté Lyrique has given carte blanche to the Ukrainian electronic music label Standard Deviation, who are inviting the city to celebrate together with them international cooperation and cultural exchange. The collaboration is also part of La Gaîté Lyrique’s commitment to showcase a resistance scene each year, a scene that fights for its freedom and independence, takes risks simply to express itself, and thereby becomes a voice for an emerging scene.
Image Courtesy of Broodoo Ramses. Image Courtesy of Studyofnight & Image Courtesy of Peter Oliver Wolff.
Standard Deviation is a perfect fit for this year’s “scenes in resistance”. Founded in September of 2020 in Kyiv, they work closely together with the famous K41 club and bring together an aspiring Ukrainian scene with a global community. With a diverse experience of promoting the Ukrainian art scene internationally, Standard Deviation is now taking over La Gaîté Lyrique on June 3rd and invite to a day full of music, performances and food for thought.
The event is starting off with a screening in collaboration with Remote Control, titled “RIDNE” (Рідне, Ukrainian for “native / dear”), a series of videos shot over the past weeks in various locations Ukraine after the invasion of Russia. The videos, shot in first-person perspective, were set to music by musicians who are closely connected to the respective places shown in each video. A talk with the team of Standard Deviation, the audiovisual artist undo despot and the French music and dance artistic director Benoît Rousseau, moderated by Mariana Berezovska, is opening a conversation around “Tokenism and Beyond: Promoting Real Change and Inclusivity in the Underground Music Culture”. The evening program consists of a great DJ line-up, concerts and live audiovisuals, including among others: Katarina Gryvul, Timothée Joly, Broodoo Ramses and Heith feat. Declino.
Image Courtesy of Standard Deviation & Remote Control.