A Percussion Piece

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Participants will wear cardboard masks bearing the faces of real Belarusian political prisoners and play improvised percussion instruments made from everyday household objects such as pots, buckets and tins. Together, they will create a powerful collective soundscape: a temporary voice for those whose own voices have been silenced. The performance will last approximately 20 to 30 minutes and will be documented as a video artwork.

The participatory performance is an initiative of antiwarcoalition.art and is organised in collaboration with Politzek.me, MÀRA, Viasna, Libereco, PEN Nederland, Pavetra e.V., JUST and Stichting NDSM-werf. The project is supported by ArtPOWER, the Cultuurfonds and Vfonds. Everyone who believes that freedom must be actively protected is invited to take part.

Ahead of the performance, De Balie will host the public event Inside the Lukashenko Prison System on 5 September. The evening will feature, among others, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski and philosopher Olga Shparaga, who will discuss political repression, freedom and resistance in Belarus.

Practical information:
- The performance starts at 4:00 p.m.
- Registered participants will need to arrive before 3:00 p.m. for check-in, preparation, instructions, mask distribution and placement on the tribune.

About Maxim Tyminko
Maxim Tyminko is an Amsterdam-based media artist, curator and developer. For more than three decades, he has been one of the leading figures in Belarusian media art. His practice explores the relationship between technology, networks, politics and digital culture, and his work has been presented internationally at institutions and events including documenta fifteen, Manifesta 14, transmediale, and ZKM | Centre for Art and Media Karlsruhe. He is a co-founder of antiwarcoalition.art, where he develops artistic projects exploring the intersection of art, technology and contemporary political realities.

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