An art project by Isabel León
Niyama Saucha is a Sanskrit term that means cleansing and purification.
Inspired by this beautiful concept I give life to this artistic project in which I reflect on three essential aspects of the human condition:
— The professional
— The personal
— And the social
At the time of carrying it out I have opted for an ironic and absurd vision, avoiding the excess of solemnity and addressing concepts as disparate as yoga and household cleaning.
The underlying idea here is my certainty that the most seemingly trivial activities —such as cleaning the house, doing the washing machine or making food— are precisely the ones that equate and connect us as human beings.
Undoubtedly, one of the main aspects that characterize my work is the indissoluble union between art and life, and in Niyama Saucha this dialectic is more than evident.
The starting point of this project is the need to reflect on my own case, that of a woman artist who has been practicing yoga for more than twenty years and who has grown up immersed in a macho culture.
But this introspection does not arise from complaint or pamphlet, but I carry it out from acceptance, self-criticism and humor.
In the same way, with Niyama Saucha I intend to honor the spiritual, physical and mental discipline of yoga in my daily life. And always, moved by respect and gratitude.
The Niyama Saucha project comes to life through performance, specifically through the practice of yoga wrapped in cleaning materials: yellow cloths, blue scouring pads, green scouring pads, and aluminum scouring pads.
These actions are materialized and transformed through different media:
The video work consists of a central piece in which I show the setup of five sessions in which I practice yoga with my body wrapped in different cleaning materials (cloths and scouring pads).
Similarly, a series of short videos individually captures each of the five sessions that make up the project: Black Series, Yellow Series, Blue Series, Green Series, and Aluminum Series.
The photographic work is composed of images in which I perform some of the asanas (yoga postures) of the so-called Warriors group with my body wrapped in the same cleaning materials.
Other photographic pieces will be added to this section as the project progresses.
Live actions are an essential part of the Niyama Saucha project. These performances can be carried out in different contexts: festivals, public spaces, a participatory project, or in the project’s own exhibition.
With these sessions, I aim to delve into the absurdity and irony that characterize Niyama Saucha and continue to play with the dialectic between art and life.
The Niyama Saucha exhibition project also includes sculptural pieces created with cleaning materials used in yoga sessions: yellow cloths, and blue, green, and aluminum scouring pads. Some of these materials are damaged after filming, and this transformation in their state is essential to give meaning to the pieces.
The exhibition also includes a selection of photographs from the Everyday Anthology archive and other cleaning objects.
The Everyday Anthology archive is a key element in the whole of Niyama Saucha.
It is not a simple compilation of photographs, but with it I delve into the roots of the project and extend the experience from the personal to the collective.
Specifically, each participant’s file is composed of two elements:
1. A photograph in which he/she appears practicing yoga with a cleaning element.
2. Information about their daily life in relation to work, yoga and household chores.
The Everyday Anthology is open to everyone who wants to participate and if you are one of them, you can do it in the following link:
I am Isabel León; visual artist, performer and teacher.
I conceive artistic practice as an act closely linked to life, and therefore, my work is always connected to my deepest thoughts and emotions.
I am interested in the seemingly small or trivial, the game and the absurd. My work emerges from the here and now, and in it I always leave room for intuition.
With Niyama Saucha I continue on my vital and professional journey, making visible what seems irrelevant —and it is not—, and giving permanence to the everyday.
After all, in art and in life, everything is relative.
Niyama Saucha is a Sanskrit term meaning cleansing and purification.
Inspired by this concept I give life to this artistic project in which I reflect on the professional, personal and social aspects of the human condition.
Niyama Saucha comes to life through performance and is composed of five essential elements: a video action, photographs, sculptures, live actions and the file Everyday Anthology.
This Everyday Anthology is open to everyone who wants to participate and if you are one of them, you can do it in the following link.
Thank you!
