This Saturday, March 13, 2010 at 7 pm: Newly installed work by Jose Bedia and Psychic Youth, Inc. In the project room

DESIGN DISTRICT GALLERY WALK
SATURDAY, MARCH 13, 2010 FROM 7 PM TO 10 PM
FREE ADMISSION
NEWLY INSTALLED WORK: JOSE BEDIA

Jose Bedia's indigenous expressions are not folkloric nor a modern curiosity.
His work depicts indigenous cultures with a reverence for Native Americans
and African Kongo rituals.

Bedia's work is not about pursuing an intellectual experience nor is he fascinated
by the aesthetics of the form in tribal art. He is a true believer in the spiritual forces
of the ritualistic objects: "Everyone knows that I base my work on those things.
"I don't want to hide anything. I try to recreate the power of that spirit force.

The large painting by Bedia, Mupala, 2007, depicts the mask of the protective
spirit Mupala,who has supernatural abilities and is the lord of the Mukanda tribe
in the Kongo. Next to the painting is the masked figure of Chisaluke, who
represents a powerful and wealthy man with spiritual influence. This mask and
dress were field-collected in 1991 by Stanford University's Central African Art
expert Manuel Jordan. Both of these characters, Chisaluke and Mupala are part
of the initiation ritual for boys in Central Zambia.

Bedia is also a collector of tribal objects, often acquired in his travels.
Mupala, 2007 was part of the exhibition First Hand, 2007 at Fredric Snitzer
Gallery where Bedia showed paintings together with African masks.

From March 13th through May 8th, Miami's Psychic Youth, Inc. will
be taking over the project room at the de la Cruz Collection Contemporary
Art Space with a new site-specific work, TRI.

The collective will be using the room to create a sacred environment, which will serve as the setting for a series of performances. During these improvised collaborative proceedings, PYI members will activate the space by executing a chain of movements under a protocol of tasks. The installation, which includes the use of sound and lighting, will constantly change over the course of these performances, becoming a site for ritual and ceremony.TRI: First Installment will launch this series of happenings on March 13th during the 2nd Saturday gallery walk. This event will feature Ricardo Guerrero, Ana Mendez and Federico Nessi.Psychic Youth, Inc. is an interdisciplinary performance collective with a heavy emphasis on musical collaboration. Inspired by Throbbing Gristle's psychic rallies, PYI develops happenings that serve as ritualistic experiences and show appreciation for the occult.