Flux Projects presents BANDALOOP’S FIELD, a vertical dance performance that spotlights the ecological impact of the fashion industry.

Flux Projects presents the world premiere of FIELD, a new work by critically acclaimed vertical dance group BANDALOOP, Friday, October 1 through Sunday, October 3, 5:30pm. This large-scale, free, outdoor public performance will take place on the façade of the 725 Ponce building overlooking the Eastside Trail of the Atlanta BeltLine. Directed by Melecio Estrella, FIELD brings together a collective of performing artists, regenerative textile artists, a sustainability strategist and creative riggers to transform an urban wall into a performance space, interlacing ancestral weaving mythologies and traditional techniques of fabric creation with expressions of the ecological and social impacts of a globalized textile industry.

“The brilliant artistry and spectacle of BANDALOOP is supported by a decades-long commitment to social engagement and climate initiatives. These are beautifully reflected in their work FIELD,” said Anne Dennington, executive director of Flux Projects. “Several years in the making, Flux Projects is extremely excited to share this work with Atlanta!”

Textile culture bearer and fashion designer IB Bayo will create a couture line of costumes and large fabric set pieces for FIELD. Born in Osogbo, Osun State Nigeria, Bayo learned to weave from his mother and sew from his father who made clothing for Nigerian royalty. His family has been farming and crafting with cotton and silk since the 1500s.

FIELD travels with a cast of six dancers, theater artist Chibueze Crouch and performer/composer Ben Juodvalkis. The work turns the side of a building into a giant loom where dances are woven from scientific research and ancestral stories. The musical score will include live singing and spoken word from the ground, the wall and the rooftop, sonically elevating the stories of FIELD.

Sustainability strategist Catherine Botrill is working with the team to facilitate public online story circles on climate and labor movements in the textile sector, highlighting nature-based solutions in cotton supply chains and high impact sustainability measures in the fashion industry.

FIELD is the second work of LOOM a multi-year initiative of programming centered on the social, ecological, and spiritual impacts of fabric.

“Mailchimp has been a proud partner of Flux Projects since 2012,” said Lain Shakespeare, Senior Director of Corporate Citizenship, MailChimp. “Flux continually brings extraordinary, vital works of art to Atlanta’s public spaces. Their latest project FIELD is no exception.”

“BlackRock is proud to partner with Flux Projects to highlight local art organizations that are making a positive difference in our community” said Peter M. Williams, Director and Head of Community Strategy & Engagement for BlackRock Atlanta. “We look forward to connecting with exceptional artists like BANDALOOP, to help increase awareness of their work and bring the arts to more Atlantans.”

As the second largest global polluting industry after oil, the human and ecological impact of clothing and fashion accounts for 20 percent of industrial water pollution alone. The stories of FIELD will illuminate this massive ecological problem, juxtaposing it with the cross-cultural power of cloth to hold, comfort, adorn and sanctify the human experience. Fabric stories will be drawn from the swaddling blanket, the altar cloth, the burial shroud, and the fishing net.

About BANDALOOP
A pioneer in vertical performance, BANDALOOP seamlessly weaves dynamic physicality, intricate choreography, and climbing technology to turn the dance floor on its side. Under the artistic direction of Melecio Estrella and founded by Amelia Rudolph, based in Oakland, California, BANDALOOP re-imagines dance, activates public spaces, and inspires wonder and imagination in audiences around the world. The company trains dancers and youth at home and on tour and has performed for millions of people in over 22 countries in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, the Americas, and Asia.

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