Posted on by Prema Ananda Marie Strack

“The emotional intensity of unexpected human connections,”

Die emotionale Intensität unvorhergesehener menschlicher Verbindungen.

  1. The emotional intensity of unexpected human connections
  2. Die argentinische Künstlerin Florencia Shanahan arbeitet mit dem irischen Künstler Ike Quirk in Berlin zusammen, um das Wesen der menschlichen Verbindungen in der heutigen Welt zu erkunden. Gemeinsam verlassen sie ihre vertraute Umgebung und lassen sich auf die Unsicherheit einer neuen Stadt ein. Das Ziel ist, die rohe Intensität von Verbindungen aufzudecken und auszudrücken, die über die Grenzen von Nationalität, Alter und Identität hinausgehen

Sowohl Ike als auch Florencia arbeiten hauptsächlich mit Malerei, beziehen aber auch audiovisuelle Medien ein, um die Erzählung der kreativen Reise zu dokumentieren und zu erweitern. Sie lassen sich von ihren gemeinsamen Erfahrungen mit Isolation und Entdeckung inspirieren und wollen die Emotionen und Geschichten widerspiegeln, die aus menschlichen Verbindungen hervorgehen. Die pulsierende, multikulturelle Energie des Berliner Stadtteils Kreuzberg dient während dieses Projekts, das von Januar bis Februar 2025 stattfindet, als Leinwand und Muse zugleich.

Diese Initiative ist eine außergewöhnliche Gelegenheit, nicht nur Kunst zu schaffen, sondern auch bedeutungsvolle Verbindungen aufzubauen und Visionen mit einem größeren Publikum zu teilen.

📍PREMARTS, BERLIN-KREUZBERG, 11. JANUAR – 11. FEBRUAR 2025

ART AND HUMAN CONNECTIONS IN BERLIN: FLORENCIA SHANAHAN AND IKE QUIRK EMBARK ON A NEW ARTISTIC PROJECT 

ART AND HUMAN CONNECTIONS IN BERLIN: FLORENCIA SHANAHAN AND IKE QUIRK EMBARK ON A NEW ARTISTIC PROJECT | (credit caracas)
We had the opportunity to talk to Florencia Shanahan about her upcoming artistic adventure in Berlin, where she will collaborate with the Irish Ike Quirk. During the talk, he answered us with enthusiasm and depth, painting clear images of a project that combines painting, audiovisual technology and the dynamism of Kreuzberg. Florencia gave us details about how this multicultural neighbourhood will influence her work, in addition to sharing her vision of the unexpected human connections she seeks to explore through this creative experience
1. How did the idea of this joint project with Ike Quirk come about and what led them to choose Berlin as a stage to explore it?

I have always felt a deep connection with people and their stories, and in my art I try to convey that sensitivity towards the human and the everyday. Ike and I share this search. From the first day, he understood my artistic vision, and we discovered that we were both interested in exploring the intensity of human connections. The idea of the project arose from a personal experience that Ike had during a trip to northern Spain, where a stranger asked him a question that led him to a deep reflection on life. When he shared that story with me, I felt connected immediately and we decided to work together to capture those sensations through art.

We chose Berlin because we wanted to get out of the known and explore a place that symbolised openness and diversity. Berlin, with its rich creative history and cultural energy, presented itself as the ideal setting for this process.

2. The title of his project, “The emotional intensity of unexpected human connections,” is deeply evocative. How do you translate this idea into your art, both in painting and in audiovisual media?

In my case, painting is my main medium, and I seek to convey those emotions through a figurative language that evokes complex feelings. Each work reflects the depth and fragility of the human connections we experience.

On the other hand, Ike uses colour as the core of his work. His focus focusses on how colours and light interact to convey emotions and calm emotional chaos. The interesting thing is that our approaches are different but complementary; we both seek to capture those moments of emotional intensity, although we do it from different artistic languages.

In addition, the incorporation of audiovisual media allows us to document the process and explore the concept of connection from another angle, connecting our experiences with the viewer in a more direct way.

3. What impact do you expect the isolation and uncertainty of the process to have on the creative connection between you and on the final works?

We believe that isolation and uncertainty are powerful tools to deepen the creative process. Moving away from the family forces us to reflect more deeply, to face our own doubts and emotions, and that inevitably translates into our works.

For me, that isolation activates a nostalgia that is usually present in my work, while for Ike, it becomes a way to articulate emotional chaos through colour. We are both open to being surprised by what this process can generate, both in the connection between us and in the final pieces.

4. From your perspective, how does the diversity of age, sex and nationality between you and Ike Quirk influence the exploration of the concept of human connection?

Diversity among us is one of the pillars of the project. Our differences – age, gender, nationality and artistic perspective – enrich the collaboration, because they force us to confront and understand points of view that are not our own.

However, what unites us most is our sensitivity to human emotions and interest in exploring how those differences can become a bridge rather than a barrier. This contrast is reflected both in the content of our works and in the way in which the public connects with them.

5. Working in Kreuzberg, Berlin, is a central point of this project. What does this multicultural neighbourhood contribute to the creative process and to the narrative of your collaboration?

Kreuzberg is a vibrant and multicultural place that perfectly reflects the spirit of the project. It is a space where cultures, ideas and people meet and constantly cross, generating unexpected human connections.

The neighbourhood brings a unique energy that will surely influence our creative process. Being in Kreuzberg not only allows us to immerse ourselves in a diverse atmosphere, but also directly observe and experience the random human connections that we try to explore in our art.

6. How do you plan to document and share the creative process you will carry out in Berlin, and how important is this record for the project as a whole?

Documenting the process is fundamental to the project, because we want the public to see not only the final result, but also the path that led us there. We will work with a local filmmaker to record the interactions, challenges and key moments of our collaboration.

For me, this record is not only a way of sharing our work, but also an extension of the project itself, an additional exploration of the human connections that arise as we create.
To keep you informed in this experience, I followed Florence at:
Instagram: floshanahanstudio