Drawing from the history and culture of the Deaf community, Rita Mazza and Anne Zander explore new artistic forms in sign language through a visually driven sign-language performance.

The Milan Congress of 1880 marked a major rupture for the Deaf community: hearing educators banned the use of sign language from European educational systems and significantly devalued Deaf culture. It was not until 2002 that German Sign Language was officially recognised in Germany as a fully fledged language, equal to spoken and written German. Yet even today, equal access to the arts remains difficult for most Deaf people — a gap that Space 1880 aims to highlight.

Together, choreographer and performer Rita Mazza and actress Anne Zander research new forms of artistic expression that move beyond the existing — and often male-dominated — traditions of sign-language poetry and Visual Vernacular. Through a movement language specially created for this work, blending sign-language poetry, body language, dance and abstract improvisation, they confront the pain carried by their Deaf ancestors and search for pathways toward healing.

Part of SPACE 1880 was also presented in the exhibition Queering the Crip, Cripping the Queer, curated by Kenny Fries at the Schwules Museum (2022–2023).

Artistic Direction + Choreography + Performance: Rita Mazza | Creative Performance: Anne Zander | Light Design: Michelle Piazzi  | Sound Engineering: Tim Schwerdter | Movement + Artistic Mentoring: Gal Naor, Matan Zamir | Video Editing: Barbara Toraldo | Photography: Mayra Wallraff | Special Thanks: Anne Riegler and Noa Winter | Audio Description: Gerald Pirnen, Gina Jeske