CULTURAL BLIND DATE
Swipe Through Love’s Evolution!
Mark your calendar for our dates on the 31st of August, as well as the 1st, 13th, and 14th of September! The VAR Association, in partnership with 3g HUB, the Comedy Theatre, and Atelier 030202 Gallery, is orchestrating a Cultural Blind Date, an event that seamlessly blends art, history, technology, and social dynamics.
The Cultural Blind Date marks the final conclusion of the Matched Society project, a groundbreaking initiative that traces the evolution of our dating culture from personals in the newspaper to modern dating platforms, with the help of a cross-disciplinary team comprising of artists, cultural operators, and experts in sociology, psychology and IT. The project investigates how these changes have shaped social behaviors and seeks to identify whether or not some communication and dating strategies were passed down through generations.
Join us and become a part of a cultural experience where we collectively explore the evolution of love and relationships, from 1880s’ newspaper personals to today’s digital swiping.
The Cultural Blind Date includes (without considering the order in which they are presented):
1. A listening session of 18 testimonials set in the theater hall, addressing themes such as partner selection, abuse, bullying and the impact of technology on human connections. These testimonials reveal the intricacies of digital relationships and invite the audience to reflect on their own identity.
2. An interactive display on the ground floor that unveils micro-narratives about love and relationships over the past 150 years. This journey through time connects you to different eras and experiences, allowing you to discover both modern and traditional perspectives on love.
3. Live performance and social interactions – a gathering straddling the line between performance and social engagement, imagined by Andu Dumitrescu and guided by our performers (Bucharest): Florin Aioane, Jenniffer Corrales, Radu Mateucă and Vero Nica / / Tg Mureș: Ștefania Buftea, Vlad Haneș, Alexandra Moldovan, Ștefan Mura – nn experience where the boundaries between art and social interaction disappear.
Participants will receive customized accessories prepared exclusively for this event.
Suitable for ages 15 and up.
Duration: 1h 30 min.
Free entry with prior reservation only at var.cult@gmail.com.
Team:
Concept and Interactive Display: Vero Nica
Software Developer: Andrei Luchian (Ashu)
Micro-Narratives: Andu Dumitrescu, Oana Hodade, Vero Nica
Narrators: Jenniffer Corrales, Ionuț Grama, Florina Maria, Vlad Nemeș, Vero Nica, Mihai Vasilescu
Artistic Coordinator of Audio Recordings: Jenniffer Corrales
Editing & sound design of Testimonials: Vlaicu Golcea
Conceptual Design for Costumes and Accessories worn by performers: Cristina Milea
Artistic Process Documentation: Alina Grau
Website Graphic Design: Andu Dumitrescu
Study Analysis, Documentation and Articles: Mihai Rusu (Sociologist), Doinița Elena Nanu (Psychologist)
Translator: Alexandru Botea
Copywriter/Content Creator: Mihai Pilcă
The project is co-financed by the National Cultural Fund Administration and supported by AMIQ Consulting.
This cultural initiative is organized by the VAR association from March to October 2024.
The project does not necessarily reflect the opinion or position of the National Cultural Fund Administration. NFCA is not responsible for the content or for the means in which the results of the project are used. These are responsibilities that fully belong to the funds’ beneficiary.
Partners: 3G HUB, IQads, Radio România Cultural, București FM, Revista Cultura, Zile și Nopți, Munteanu Recomandă.
– from personals in the newspaper, to swipes and emoji
– we explore the evolution of matrimonial ads over the past 150 years –
VAR Association launches Matched Society, a project that delves into the evolution of matrimonial ads, from personals in the newspaper to online dating, with the involvement of an interdisciplinary team consisting of artists, qualified sociologists and psychologists, IT specialists and cultural operators. The goal is to explore the impact this phenomenon had on social behaviours and to find out whether or not some communication and dating tactics were passed down through generations.
Matched Society is embarking on a process of making a record of all the ads and articles that have something to do with the world of „dating”, providing in due course a historical perspective on how people have connected with one another over the past 150 years. The materials will be analysed by other members of our project that are qualified in sociology, psychology, and fine arts, thus adding a contextual dimension to the research. Through this multidisciplinary approach, we aim to highlight not only the changes and the continuities in the way human connections are sought, but also to provide a deeper understanding of the cultural and social influences that have shaped these social interactions over time. Through our project we aim to better understand the way imagination operates under its tendencies to romanticize love, and how the exposure of a private space in public changes over time depending on the degree of environment sophistication.
Matched Society is not limited to research and encourages the young-adult public to get involved in its making. Everybody is invited to chip in for the completion of a socio-psychological study by answering a survey by 01.05.2024, regarding the way we perceive and interact on dating aps. The survey is available here: https://varcult.typeform.com/to/EzVJ4Nv1
By creating four audio podcasts and an interactive multimedia presentation, Matched Society will become an opportunity to meet with the public during four events that are due to take place in September – two in Bucharest, and two in Târgu-Mureș. We will also develop an open-source online platform – the first digitalized archive in Romania that deals with matrimonial ads and online dating.
In case you have a story you’d like to share, a story about your experience in the world of online dating, one that fascinated you, amused you, or even outraged you, don’t hesitate to contact us at contact@varcultural.eu. We’ll make sure we’ll turn your story into a cultural product! The performativity of your dating experience will help us reflect on the intimacy, the vulnerability and the strong feelings that emerge in the world of online dating, while the process of turning your story into a cultural product will provide the distance that is required to better understand what is real and meaningful in a hyperconnected world.
Follow our journey and the Matched Society events with the help of our online diary available on VAR’s social media platforms. We’ll stay in touch on our Facebook and Instagram pages.
This project is co-financed by the grant NCFA / National Cultural Fund Administration and supported by AMIQ. A cultural initiative undertaken by the VAR Association from March to Octomber 2024.
Our partners: TEATRU FIX, 3G HUB, IQads, Radio România Cultural, București FM, Revista Cultura, Munteanu Recomandă, Zile și Nopți.
The project does not necessarily reflect the opinion or position of the National Cultural Fund Administration. NFCA is not responsible for the content or for the means in which the results of the project are used. These are responsibilities that fully belong to the funds’ beneficiary.
