WILSON Y LOS MÁS ELEGANTES

HANS BRYSSINCK

Wilson y Los Más Elegantes is a multidisciplinary project developed by Belgian artist Hans Bryssinck over the past few years in Colombia. Through the process of learning to sing traditional Colombian music he configures a series of new works in performance, music, and film.

Hans uses performative strategies to play with Colombian language and gestures and makes them his own, resulting in a clumsy but sincere intercultural dialogue. From the position of an intruder in another culture, the artist investigates the edges of identity, in this particular case of Colombianity. Instead of affirming and consolidating a specific identity, he plays with ambiguity and doubt.

THE FILM Bambuco is a Colombian musical genre that could be considered a national symbol and still evokes some kind of patriotic feeling. In Wilson y Los Más Elegantes we witness the birth of a new musical trio, which interprets traditional Colombian songs at family gatherings. The trio is composed of two native guitar players and a foreign singer who does everything possible, and more, to become a local. We follow the main character throughout his complex subjective experience and through the eyes of his bystanders. Read more about the film here.

THE BAND In the summer of 2013 during a radio appearance at Univalle Estereo in Cali, Hans Bryssinck launched the band Wilson y Los Más Elegantes. They’ve performed mainly at private parties but also passed through music venues as well as a bar, an exhibition space, and a film festival. The band exclusively performs in Colombia.  facebook.com/WilsonyLosMasElegantes

THE ALBUM Wilson y Los Más Elegantes’ first album was made for people who want to connect with the Colombian classics. It brings a fine selection of bambucos, cumbias, and a vals, featuring Wilson as a singing Colombian anomaly with his irresistible and inimitable accent. The original Spanish lyrics reveal an immediate glorification and a desire for the native land of Colombia. “El Regreso is the song that I relate to the most,” says Wilson; “because it testifies of the intense but also ambivalent sensations that come with returning to your native land.” The entire album was recorded at the Acuarela Studios in the city of Cali, the legendary musical capital of Colombia. The B-side of the album carries the instrumental versions, for learning to sing along at home and to give you a first hand experience of this traditional music. The local caleño designer and illustrator CaliDoso created the artwork that evokes the idiosyncratic nature of Wilson y Los Más Elegantes. Read more about the album here.

Sing Along: Thursday April 7, 6-7pm, Big Medium Gallery In this event Hans Bryssinck invites us to gather with a couple of beers around the lyrics of one of his favorite Colombian songs. He will introduce us to the basic principles of the Spanish language and of this musical genre. For singers and non-singers alike, this is the one moment to connect to your roots through a genuine sing along.

Wilson y Los Más Elegantes is a part of the Fusebox series SAME SAME BUT DIFFERENT From the curator: Same Same But Different is a series of sound and video works that tackle questions related to identity: how our identities can be different, how they can be similar, and most interestingly, how they end up mixing to create the super diverse societies in which we live. During my first visit, I was struck by how diverse yet seemingly gentrified the city of Austin was. The three works I’ve put together, is in part a response to that contradiction–they depict characters and stories in movement, trying to define themselves better through confrontation with other realities and situations. From that confrontation comes a very moving picture of human beings in search for their own identity and for a place to live it.

Same same but different is an expression used a lot in Thailand, especially in an attempt to sell something, but it can mean just about anything depending on what the user is trying to achieve. Q “Is this a real Rolex?” A ” Yes sir, same same but different” – Online Urban Dictionary

Hans Bryssinck: Wilson y Los Más Elegantes Big Medium, Thurs 7 & Fri 8 @ 12-9pm (27 mins, starts every half hour)

Nastio Mosquito: Us And We (T.T.T.A.W.) Museum of Human Achievement, Thurs 7 12-7pm & 8-9pm & Fri 8 @ 12-9pm (8 mins, starts every 15 mins)

ZimmerFrei: Hometown Mutonia Sekrit Theater, Thurs 7 @ 9pm (69 mins)

Matthieu Goeury is an arts worker based in Brussels, Belgium. He is active as a producer, curator and late night entertainer. Working in the field of performing arts, visual art and music, his trajectory led him to create a workspace for emerging artists, participate in the launch of a major contemporary art museum, and program one of the most exciting venues in Europe–Vooruit. During the last few years, he created the festivals Possible Futures, (IM)Possible Futures and Smells Like Circus. He tries to apply, with more or less success, strong ethics to the projects he develops, based on socio-political engagement, solidarity, equality, diversity, pragmatism and reasonable seriousness.