(EN)
"Pangea is an extension of Martinho Dias practice as a painter and, essentially, is made from tourist pictures and newspaper news from 26 countries of 5 continents; developed, underdeveloped and emerging. In the same stage (screen), coexists different visions; the image of the ideal face that each country wants to show of itself by postcards and newspapers showing what the postcards hidden, like a kind of "diary" of a nation which is revealed everyday through the image and writing. Pangea intends to make a comparison of the two "self-portraits"; one truer and the other more ideal. It is given particular importance to the written word, because all the papers are written in different official languages.
The sound is comprised of the national anthems, a capella, by native invited singers. I chose only female vocals, to achieve a more uniform sound and by foreseeing that, in some countries, women have more difficulties in collaborating on the project for political reasons - which turned out to be a reality. In this collaboration, the symbolic weight that the anthem has as the ultimate symbol of a nation, remained, but the song gained new dynamic through the richness of the interpretations." (Martinho Dias)
The sound is comprised of the national anthems, a capella, by native invited singers. I chose only female vocals, to achieve a more uniform sound and by foreseeing that, in some countries, women have more difficulties in collaborating on the project for political reasons - which turned out to be a reality. In this collaboration, the symbolic weight that the anthem has as the ultimate symbol of a nation, remained, but the song gained new dynamic through the richness of the interpretations." (Martinho Dias)
(PT)
"Pangea, cujo nome deriva do suposto continente primordial, começou a ser estruturada em 2007. Derivando da temática recorrente da pintura de Martinho Dias, Pangea reflete várias realidades distintas que, na sua origem, fazem parte de uma mesma realidade/sociedade. O projeto faz coabitar num mesmo espaço (ecrã) essas assimetrias: a imagem da face ideal que cada país quer mostrar de si próprio – reflectida nos postais ilustrados e nas imagens turísticas e idílicas e a realidade (mais ou menos real), que os jornais tendem a mostrar o que os postais ilustrados ocultam. Pangea pretende, deste modo, fazer um cruzamento entre dois “auto-retratos”. A obra inclui 26 países dos cinco continentes, entre países desenvolvidos, subdesenvolvidos e emergentes. A parte sonora do vídeo é formada pelos hinos nacionais de cada um dos 26 países focados na obra, interpretados a capella por cantoras convidadas e oriundas das 26 nacionalidades." (Martinho Dias)
Photo/Image Editing: Ana Assunção
Prodution: Martinho Dias
