JOALI Maldives To Inspire The Senses With The Imagi-Nature Art Festival This April
Wednesday 29th of March 2023
The first and only art-immersive resort, JOALI Maldives is gearing up to host its annual Art Week with the Imagi-Nature Art Festival this April. Curated to draw on the senses, the resort is collaborating with esteemed art consultant, Tatiana Gecmen-Walderk and invites guests to take pride in the creative spirit of nature in the heart of the Indian Ocean.
A strong believer in the slogan ‘experiencing art instead of seeing art’, Tatiana is passionate about fostering innovative collaborations and cultural content that inspires the inner artist in every one of us. With a global network of connections that includes world-class galleries, collectors, auction houses and artists, Tatiana has worked as an art consultant for several high-end clients. As a valued partner for JOALI Maldives, Tatiana is poised to bring an outstanding selection of works by contemporary artists to the resort and will be holding exhibitions, performances, limited editions, and permanent installations at the property.
From April 14th to 18th, innovative dialogues will take centre stage at the luxury property with an exciting lineup of international art forms, impressive installations and local influences forming part of the scintillating calendar. During Art Week, guests can first-hand witness the pioneering project unfold, seamlessly merging art and sustainability through exclusive collaborations with world-famous artists.
Some of the celebrated artists featured in the project include Aurelie Hoegy, Studio Mameluca, Maja Rohwetter, Barbara Veiga, Jeanne Susplugas, Le Petite Chef and Hajja & Joule. Complementing JOALI’s picturesque beauty, each immersive installation is designed to engage, ignite and free the imagination with guests of all ages invited to interact with each eco-conscious artwork portrayed in the resort.
On World Art Day itself, celebrated globally on April 15th, JOALI Maldives will host a special selection of events in association with renowned artists. Posing as a Sculpture Park, the shores of JOALI Maldives will be transformed into a gallery itself with four permanent installations exhibited at the resort from the Imagi-Nature Art Festival.
The four novel art pieces joining the resort’s collection are Hoegy’s fluid art piece ‘JOALI Hammock’: Studio Mameluca’s vicennial Installation of the Maldives ‘One Egg. One World’; Jeanne Susplugas’ virtual reality experience “Daydreaming’ and Rohwetter’s multisensory augmented reality app ‘Contingencies’. Hoegy’s muse for the JOALI Hammock was the natural curves of the island, its abundant white sand and the movement of the Indian Ocean. In another piece of Studio Mameluca- White Tern’s Bird Nest guests can be one with nature and the ocean life with ocean sound customization featured in the piece.
With Susplugas’ installation, guests can take a closer look at the brain’s activity, traversing among neurons and synapses through eye movement before continuing their virtual experience with Rohwetter’s expanded dimensions of reality piece. On the gastronomical front, Le Petite Chef will be redefining culinary arts at the Saoke, the Japanese restaurant designed by famed architect Noriyoshi Murumatsu. The sumptuous installation will indulge guests for six months at the restaurant.
In a similar experience, guests will also be able to purchase scarves made by Rohwetter, which will serve as a memento of their soulful time in the Maldives. The scarves will be available in the JOALI Art Studio and the La Maison de JOALI boutique. Aligning with JOALI Maldives’ commitment to gender equality, the Imagi-Nature Art Festival will spotlight talented female artists in its curation.
Female artists arriving to deliver creative concepts include Veiga, who will give a live performance of ‘Earth Layers’ which gives clear visibility to planet conservation; Susplugas who offers a reflection on the ills of society with its humour, derision and cynicism captured perfectly and Rohwetter who will be bluring the lines between the physical and virtual world with an awe-inspiring cross-medial approach. Moreover, guests can also partake in a unique collaboration between Hoegy and Maldivian sister artists, Hajja & Joule as they come together to create pillows and embroidery with guests.
At JOALI Maldives, art comes hand in hand with sustainability with each art piece displayed at the resort retaining its distinctive quality while paying heed to echoes of sustainability. With many pieces showcased made from recycled waste, clay or natural materials, the resort encourages guests to lead a sustainable lifestyle. In this wake, the Imagi-Nature Art Festival will partner with Parley for the Ocean and Utopia to present a collaboration with contemporary artist, Jeppe Hein who will exhibit a limited-edition flowing flag in the ocean.
Titled ‘We Are All Interconnected”, the work shows support for the Parley for the Oceans’ Global Cleanup Network and the installation is made from ocean plastic, a premium material produced from upcycled plastic waste recovered from remote islands, coastlines, and waters by the organization. 100% of the proceeds of this initiative will be used to fund JOALI Maldives’ programs for the plastic interception, education, communication, material science and eco-innovation.