Anca Benera & Arnold Estefan
Since 2011, Anca Benera (b. 1977) and Arnold Estefan (b. 1978) have collaborated on installation, video, and performance projects that use research-based methodologies to expose the invisible patterns underlying historical, social, and geopolitical narratives. Their recent works focus on the phenomenon of man-made landscapes, where the transformation of territory is inseparable from state violence and the overexploitation of resources.
They are recipients of the Birgit Jürgenssen Prize (2022), awarded by the Austrian Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service and Sport and the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, and are currently Creative Fellows at the Postsocialist Art Centre, University College London. Their work has been presented internationally, including at Manifesta 15, Barcelona Metropolitana (2024); the Creative Time Summit, BAM New York (2024); Museum Tinguely, Basel (2023); the Whitechapel Gallery, London (2023); the Trafó Galéria, Budapest (solo, 2021); the Migros Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Zurich (2021); MUCEM, Marseille (2019); FRAC des Pays de la Loire (2018); and mumok, Vienna (2017).
REHEARSALS FOR PEACE
2023
2 channel video installation, color, stereo sound, 16:26 min
Hay, recycled wooden boards, tree branches, textiles, fur, military tripod, whip,
and other found materials
Imagine a pastoral landscape where the rhythmic grazing of animals seamlessly accommodates the military training schedule, resulting in a surreal coexistence of sheep and armored vehicles. This peculiar juxtaposition characterizes the daily life of Cincu, a Transylvanian village nestled in central Romania.
A tale from the 16th century narrates the story of Ursula, a female figure disguised as a man, who successfully chased away occupying intruders (at that time, the Ottomans) using the supersonic sound of a whip. This account purportedly originated in Cincu, which today houses one of NATO’s key combat training zones in Romania.
Rehearsals for Peace breathes life into Ursula’s legend within the present-day occupied pastoral landscape, employing the sonic might of whip-cracking as a spell. The film portrays a contemporary Ursula facing the modern armored vehicles, and harnessing the potential of the local ritual. She assimilates elements from the military’s choreographic lexicon, like tactical hand signals, and intertwines them with the ancient practice of whip-cracking.