Image courtesy of Art Center Sarasota

Art Center Sarasota debuts the first in a four-part series bringing performance art into the galleries with a one-day show melding mathematics and philosophy from artist Wojtek Sawa. Clearing the galleries over the weekend, Sawa will install himself in Gallery 2 for an interactive presentation of the artistry and power of numbers in everyday reality, seeing the artist crafting installations, sketching and diagramming on the walls and inviting audience members to share their own experiences. Entitled “The Gospel of Numbers,” the show opens for its one and only performance this Monday at 3pm.

“It’s something that we don’t do,” said executive director Lisa Berger of adding performance art to the programming at Art Center Sarasota. “Because it’s a very fleeting thing – it happens and then it goes away.” Still, when approached by Sawa, who has presented his visual art in the center previously, she was sold. He told her the idea came to him in a dream. “He started looking at numbers and how they’re so important, but in our daily lives, we don’t even think about them,” said Berger.

But to Sawa, numbers are something profound, and that’s what he wants to share. “My interaction with numbers has been a most fundamental experience when it comes to defining man’s relationship to the universe,” said Sawa. “It can be art, because it manifests itself as patterns, harmonies and rhythms; it is philosophy because it brings a unified perception.”

Sawa’s performance is the first for the new LiveForm series, with presentations from artists such as Miroslaw Chudy, Dustin Juengel and Zach Gilliland scheduled throughout the season.

Image courtesy of Art Center Sarasota