Fabiola was a performance that took place at the Byzantine Chapel of The Menil Collection and was commissioned by Cindy Peña and Toby Kamps in conjunction with Francis Alys’s The Fabiola Project. The piece was a meditation on the sacred space between art and faith, lost love and new territory. Text and photos from the project were featured in Gulf Coast Journal’s Winter/Spring 2018 edition with an introduction by Rachel Cook. The performance took place in August 2016.
“Lauren Moya Ford’s Fabiola is a lecture performance that weaves a response to Francis Alÿs’s The Fabiola Project together with her reflections on recent experiences in art-filled churches and a failed romance in Europe. Through images and words, Moya Ford explores faithfulness, originality, and symbolism while considering the devotional and miraculous sides of art and life.”
— Cindy Peña
“…The star of the exhibition was a performative lecture by Houston and Madrid based artist Lauren Moya Ford. As well-executed as Alÿs’ works, Ford’s lecture was enchanting. Not very often does one leave a lecture wishing to see it again on DVD so as to be able to pick through the subtleties. Ford started with a story of love and loss and weaved the audience through experiences. She forced patrons’ minds not to focus on the slides she presented, but the sound of her voice and coached the listeners to close their eyes and visualize a photo she described instead of seeing it projected. Many times there was no projection at all, just darkness. It was much more of a performance than a lecture and featured well with Francis Alÿs’ work, which she describes and discusses throughout the talk. While focusing more on experiences and the moment our bodies and hearts feel true movement, the artist elevated the installation through the talk and left the listeners in tranquility and thought upon leaving the chapel.”
— Paul Middendorf and Michael McFadden, Free Press Houston, January 19, 2017
