AADK residency


2021



I started my residency at AADK with researching the material qualities of the dried-out remnants of the barbary fig, a local cactus plant, that thanks to its fibre structure, is able to retain considerable amount of water, thus thrive on limited water sources. Some years ago, many of them around here dried out due to a plague.
                                       
There are numerous abandoned houses in and around Blanca (ES). When stumbling upon them, I had to think of the dryness I experienced there. As a place is being left, human presence is withdrawn from its interior and exterior spaces, memories drying out slowly. Life continues somewhere else and the decay of the houses gives place for new beginnings.

Working with the dried fibres of the fig and combining it with locally found clay, I have been using water as a main catalyst of reaching different stages of transformation while balancing between stability and flexibility.
                     







Besides, I have been recording the sound of dried elements in the surroundings (plants, sand, mud and stones) and of the material residues of deserted buildings. By editing and altering the recordings according to their material characteristics, I have been exploring the perception of time through body and material.

The research resulted in a series of sculptures and a sound installation.



Residency supported by Media Art Friesland