For this Prelude, Astrit Ismaili and The Performance Agency invite the audience on a journey through the world of ‘The First Flower’, an experimental pop music album to be released in 2023. Hosted by Arnisa Zeqo, this evening is the first public presentation of the ongoing project that oscillates between a listening session, a conversation and a performance.


‘The First Flower’ is Astrit Ismaili’s second album that tells the story of the transformation of a plant into the first flower on earth—using beauty as a coping mechanism and means of seduction to promote their dissemination, while pioneering in extremely fluid sexual interaction. Queerness within the botanical world is a natural phenomenon that occurs freely, in contrast to the reality of queer communities who fight for their political existence. Drawing a parallel between the history of flowers and pop culture, the project requalifies contemporary pop aesthetics and manifests how creativity can be a strategy to overcome existential limitations. 


‘The First Flower’ will be accompanied by a publication and a performance in 2023. The project is supported by the Upstream: Music X Design grant of The Creative Industries Fund NL and the Investigation Grant of the Kemmler Foundation (Kemmler Kemmler GmbH). Produced by The Performance Agency.


Wednesday 07 December 2022 7PM

KW Centre for Contemporary Art
Auguststraße 69
10117 Berlin