MARTIN & THE EVIL EYES OF NUR
The Do-Be-Do-Be-Do-Affair
Tue, 22.3.2011 8 pm
MAK Columned Main Hall
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The performance art trio “Martin & The evil eyes of Nur,” consisting of the fictitious characters Pussy Hass, Kaiser Kurzweil and Herr Leitung, examines the representation, interpretation and significance of the male body in the media and popular culture. In doing so, the performers focus on the themes of emancipation, gender-as-performance and queer sexuality in a postdualistic system.
For MAK NITE, “Martin & The evil eyes of Nur” are developing a glamorous performance entitled “The Do-Be-Do-Be-Do-Affair” which—in addition to new songs—will also include surprising and exciting costumes. “You’ll have a hard time deciding whether you want to ‘do’ them or ‘be’ them,” the artists remark cryptically.
“Martin & The evil eyes of Nur,” founded in Istanbul by Daniel Massrow, Nora Riedl and Wolfgang Tragseiler in 2009, employs the concept of the “superstar” in a pop-context in order to communicate its content. Only the two men perform on stage, playing the fictitious characters Herr Leitung and Pussy Hass, while their female counterpart Kaiser Kurzweil is responsible for theory and conception. With their songs and grand gestures, Herr Leitung and Pussy Hass become a surface onto which the contents they address can be projected: elevating themselves to the same level as the “stars,” the two characters inscribe themselves into the pop-cultural code—which this trio considers to be an “opensource
code” wielding almost unlimited influence on societal phenomena and trends.
Their concept is defined by the idea of the “infinite aesthetic loop”; they act as a fun house mirror of sorts for pop music, fashion and ever-returning retro fads. Musically, the artists serve up an idiosyncratic mixture of 1980s new wave, 1990s dance floor and “dark chanson.” They play their shows using classic synthesizers, powerful beats and an old-fashioned reed organ.
The three protagonists became acquainted with each other 2009 while spending a year studying abroad at Yıldız Technical University in Istanbul, where they subsequently founded “Martin & The evil eyes of Nur.” Since then, they have worked on realizing their visions in Turkey, Germany and Austria.
For MAK NITE, “Martin & The evil eyes of Nur” are developing a glamorous performance entitled “The Do-Be-Do-Be-Do-Affair” which—in addition to new songs—will also include surprising and exciting costumes. “You’ll have a hard time deciding whether you want to ‘do’ them or ‘be’ them,” the artists remark cryptically.
“Martin & The evil eyes of Nur,” founded in Istanbul by Daniel Massrow, Nora Riedl and Wolfgang Tragseiler in 2009, employs the concept of the “superstar” in a pop-context in order to communicate its content. Only the two men perform on stage, playing the fictitious characters Herr Leitung and Pussy Hass, while their female counterpart Kaiser Kurzweil is responsible for theory and conception. With their songs and grand gestures, Herr Leitung and Pussy Hass become a surface onto which the contents they address can be projected: elevating themselves to the same level as the “stars,” the two characters inscribe themselves into the pop-cultural code—which this trio considers to be an “opensource
code” wielding almost unlimited influence on societal phenomena and trends.
Their concept is defined by the idea of the “infinite aesthetic loop”; they act as a fun house mirror of sorts for pop music, fashion and ever-returning retro fads. Musically, the artists serve up an idiosyncratic mixture of 1980s new wave, 1990s dance floor and “dark chanson.” They play their shows using classic synthesizers, powerful beats and an old-fashioned reed organ.
The three protagonists became acquainted with each other 2009 while spending a year studying abroad at Yıldız Technical University in Istanbul, where they subsequently founded “Martin & The evil eyes of Nur.” Since then, they have worked on realizing their visions in Turkey, Germany and Austria.