ICAT Playdate: Revolving Red Monuments

Term: Spring 2026

Date: February 27th, 2026

Time: 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.

Location: Community Assembly in the Creativity + Innovation District Living-Learning Community

Instructor: Phyllis Newbill

Presented By: Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology (ICAT)

Description:

R.R.M. Revolving Red Monuments, an extended media documentary, is a collaboration by an international group of artists, including American Meredith Drum, Russian American Nikita Shokhov, and Bulgarians Albena Baeva, Eva Davidova, Slava Savova, Dessislava Terzieva, Martin Atanasov, Elena Kaludova, and Kalin Serapionov. The works in this collection reevaluate Cold War-era monuments in Bulgaria and critique generations of corrupt political leaders who dismantle democratic institutions, civil rights, and social and cultural programs. R.R.M. is virtual graffiti, adding to the physical graffiti covering these mostly abandoned monuments. To experience R.R.M., a participant opens the app on a mobile device; through the camera, four-dimensional virtual sculptures are revealed. The participant can move through and around the animated sculptures to see the shifting forms. As they explore, the participant hears poems about war by Wisława Szymborska, Zhivka Baltadzhieva, Paul Celan, and others. The soundtrack also includes music by Andrea Williams. R.R.M. does not argue for or against removing the monuments; rather, the project examines the historical and future impacts of this visual culture and adds to it with collaborative, virtual media.

 

Speakers:

Dr. Meredith Drum, Visual Arts