In theatre, the act of taking a bow is both an ending and an acknowledgment—a moment of reflection and celebration on a performance completed. Bryan Giuseppi Rodriguez Cambana’s Taking a Bow extends this metaphor to life itself, asking “as death approaches, who do we bow to after the great performance of living?”
Taking a Bow transforms intimate memories of mourning into an ode to the resilience, beauty, and contradictory dimensions of masculinities. Set in the Peruvian coastal community of Callao, this exhibition unfolds across two acts. The first reveals itself as a dreamscape honouring the memory of Bryan’s friend, found deceased in a bowing position. The second act is a tribute to the artist’s biological grandfather which recreates his pink living room. Through these acts, the exhibition examines complex and tender masculinities.
Taking a Bow is a new commission by artist Bryan Giuseppi Rodriguez Cambana. This installation has been commissioned by Art Exchange and the Essex Collection of Art from Latin America.
Curated by Gisselle Giron Casas
About Bryan Giuseppi
Bryan Giuseppi Rodriguez Cambana (they/he) was born in Peru and lives in London. They graduated with a MFA at Goldsmiths, University of London, in 2021 and completed their BA in Fine Art at Tufts University and the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston in 2014. Their work has been exhibited in galleries, museums and festivals internationally, including Des Bains, London (2022) PEER Gallery, London (2022) Cell Project Space, London (2022); Bloomberg New Contemporaries, First Site, Colchester and South London Gallery, London (2021); 37th Kassel Documentary Film and Video Festival, Kassel, Germany (2020).
In 2018, Rodriguez Cambana was a recipient of the Engaging Artists Fellowship at More Art in New York City and presented ‘Waiting for the Session to Begin,’ a public artwork temporarily installed in Coney Island, Brooklyn. In addition, they were the recipient of the Goldsmiths ACME Studio Award and, afterwards, a resident artist at Gasworks’ Participation Residency in London, UK (2022-2023). Most recently, they were awarded a ‘Project Grant’ from the UK’s Art Council and is currently working on a feature-length film, ‘ MALCRIAO,’ currently in post-production.
