During the pandemic years, when art and culture were canceled, I really began to discover my practice as an artist. I needed nothing more than my body, a little space, and my cell phone to do so. I began documenting my movement research in a blog. This resulted in 22 blog posts with over 30 videos, which I was able to share via social media with audiences and networks, some new, some larger. As the world became more crowded, I found my anchor, balance, backbone and freedom in movement, in dance.
Last week, at the Effinger Art Festival I showed a condensation of my blog in the form of a video installation as well as a short live performance in collaboration with composer and lyricist Anicia Kohler. As a metaphor for the constriction during the pandemic period, I used a single pallet as a reduced stage space.
The video installation was a spontaneous collaboration with South Indian artist Bhisaji Gadekar, who is currently participating in the residency at PROGR Art Center in Bern. Bhisaji spent the Lockdown at his birthplace, visiting the playgrounds of his childhood. He showed a hypnotic reflection of his childhood memories in a video loop.
The performance with Anicia Kohler was also a spontaneous collaboration. When the world stood still in 2020, she conducted 27 interviews with people from all over the world during one year and wrote music for real and sampled pianos to the most touching statements of her interlocutors*.
The Effinger Art Festival took place for the first time this year. Nearly 30 people who are artistically active, either professionally or in their free time, showed their works spread over four floors at Effinger. It was an awesome event with buzzing energy!
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