1 watering can

1 pair of wellies

2 strings of seaweed

4 sticks of dried mulberry

I prepared this performance as a result of a research residency in St. Just Cornwall, UK. I chose the place, the materials, and the weather in relation to my experiences during my stay there.

The weather is really misty and I’m standing in a narrow alley in the heart of St. Just. I face the audience. I pour water in my wellies and start to sniffle very loudly and awkwardly. I slowly lift my right foot and water runs out of my shoe like a dog peeing in the street. I put the dried mulberry sticks in my mouth and take the seaweed strings in each hand. I crook my upper body and slowly walk backwards while also slowly whipping the seaweed from left to right. On this slow walk back the seaweed touches everything close to it but doesn’t break as I whip it harder and harder. Eventually I disappear.

The most important part of this performance was to use the found seaweed in a very physical way. On first sight it looks so fragile yet whipping it to the ground or the wall doesn’t really destroy it. With this performance I focused mainly on the creation of an intense situation in a compressed and intimate but public space. It’s an exploration of how materials react on the bodies’ movement and vice versa. Ultimately, my slow and determined movements within the performance became an emotional environment that allowed for various interpretations.