Climate crisis: Speculative futures
Horniman museum and Gardens
5 March, 2020
Horniman Late event is an annual initiative of Horniman Museum and Gardens in a creative response to the global climate crisis, this year in collaboration with CCW. An interactive experience of video, installation, workshops and performances in dialogue around global climate issues took place at Horniman Museum among the permanent collections on display - an extraordinary compilation that reveals authentic artefacts, exemplifying cross cultural diversity - exciting assemblage of Anthropology, Natural history, Aquarium, Musical instruments collection. Each project presented at the Opening night of the format was critically developed around different aspects of the Climate change theme and in resonance with the museum's collections. Sound installation of music instruments imitating animals' cries, live poetry reading, performer acting as being 'conserved' extinct mammal, fervent discussion about climate issues choregraphed similarly to the concept of 'speed dating', were only part of the events during the night.
Inspired by the Museum's Gardens and Trees collection, designed and developed to be exhibited outdoors, the installation for the Performance piece Quarantine found shelter at the very entrance of the Museum, because of the unpredicted weather conditions. As a metaphor of a collective experience, it turned into a custom point 'assessing' the 'legitimacy' of the visitors to enter and share the responsibility of 'togetherness' in defence of a cause incited by a global concern which upsets all humanity. The awkwardness of the scene, acting as occurrence between hallucination and disruption at once, in an embarrassing landscape with semi-exposed, semi-protective features, which could evoke the idea that the presence would be of either a 'creature' in destress - exhibitionist, prisoner, or animal fallen into a trap, locked out assumptions about how such a confrontation might be perceived. And climate responded - severe rain throughout the whole day, cold and wind in the falling dusk, being an ally to the performer in his provocative, devouring exam; endangering his safety, challenging his endurance, but powerfully raising concern in the spectators with its authenticity, hopelessness, and desolation...
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Time-management!
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Along with a great responsibility, excitement, and commitment, the main challenge of taking part in such an extensive project was time. The strict, very short deadline put a lot of pressure on the process, yet I found it extremely motivating and engaging. The process of execution of the installation, test, and finalization were reported, each phase was carefully navigated and supervised, helping me prove attention and consistency. Working with an established institution, with great reputation and precise functioning system, raised my personal awareness and commitment to another level. This is an experience different from academic environment, from collaboration, or self-initiated event. For a short, but intensively experienced working process, I managed to perceive what to continue working in and respond to a professional environment is supposed to be like.
Application process
A little glimpse to the application process for
the Horniman Late. An interesting point was the requirement to propose a specific location
for the artwork. Inspired by the Trees collections I designed a project that directly refers to the relationship of people with nature. Therefore I found it both
