Hugging the Emptiness — A Werkstattwoche-Lüben-Talk with Renan Marcondes

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In this episode, Brazilian performance artist Renan Marcondes shares how dance, visual art, and philosophy merge into his powerful, durational performances. Trained in visual arts but drawn to movement, Renan discovered performance through a mix of accident, curiosity, and mentorship — and has since made it his medium for exploring vulnerability, death, and the human condition.

During our talk at the Werkstattwoche, he speaks about daily discipline, the physical endurance behind eight-hour performances, and how grief has become part of his creative language. His grandmother’s voice, birdsong, and even silence find their way into his work, transforming loss into ritual and presence.

We also discuss his poetic new project — a performance staged at a small wooden bus station with no buses. Here, Renan explores gestures of waiting, hugging the emptiness, and finding meaning in stillness. It’s an episode about the art of being present, in every sense of the word.