If you’ve heard about Spectral Vizcaya and wondered about this installation’s origins, take a step back with us. Sebastian Duncan-Portuondo’s first project at Vizcaya was Arrangements for a Concrete Box, part of the 2015 exhibition, “Fantastical Vizcaya,” which celebrated the theatrics of the estate as envisioned by Paul Chalfin, Vizcaya’s Artistic Director.
In that commission, Duncan-Portuondo brought Vizcaya’s archives to life on a grand scale, through light and color, including stained glass projections and shadow theater.
Light, Shadow and Color
He returns on February 2021 with Spectral Vizcaya, which will be a similar experience with one main difference — it is built with and by community members, and local volunteers will be part of this performance!
During the Spectral Vizcaya production, audience members will meet and interact with historical figures. This might mean having a conversation with Althea Altemus (Deering’s secretary), singing along with the Gondolier, or creating your own lantern in a workshop led by Sebastian to add your own light to the performance.
As visitors walk along the East Terrace, their shadows will be projected onto the façade of the Main House, activating the estate with the illusion of many more “phantom” guests.
By and For the Community
Vizcaya’s Participatory Public Art projects depend on community participation from start to finish. By welcoming locals into the creative process, the performance is an outcome of many people working together in a dynamic, community-driven, immersive process. That process is very much like Vizcaya— the result of hundreds of individuals working to complete independent tasks for an inspiring result.
Ready to take part in Spectral Vizcaya? Check out upcoming art-making workshops or reserve tickets to the performance on Friday, February 26 at 6:30 p.m. at www.vizcaya.org/spectral
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