The sound of the dying forest #01

12th of August 2023

during ART ACTION

at 30th Anniversary of crane lab

Ancien Château de Chevigny

Millery (Côte-d'Or) FRANCE

PART ONE

We are listening carefully and walking together towards an old tree.

PART TWO

I am drawing individual gestures with a green walnut into the hand of every participant.

 

PART THREE

I step amidst the withered leaves of the dying branch, my bare hand striking my exposed chest. A sound that cleaves through the tranquil rustling of tree leaves in the wind.

PART FOUR

I hold a bowl of green walnuts, arm outstretched, as each breath becomes more and more labored, eventually causing the bowl to fall to the floor.

 

PART FIVE

 

aftermath

 

 Photos by Bernard Francois, Pascale Ciapp, Tokio Maruyama & Ilka Theurich

 

 

ACTION SUMMARY

The old, dying branch of the walnut tree and its now-dry leaves rustled in the wind at high pitches, while the rest of the tree, less firmly anchored to the ground, struck up a lower frequency. The visitors listened in silence to the tree. After some time had passed, the performance artist used her naked upper body to repeatedly break the silence with sharp blows on it with her hand. In the final part of the performance, Theurich filled a kitchen bowl with dried, yet still green walnuts, and held it outstretched in her arm until her breath grew increasingly heavy and louder. Eventually, she could no longer maintain her grip on the bowl, and it dropped to the ground on the lawn.