Water 23, 2023-2024
Inspired by Marina Abramovic’s Cleaning the House Workshops, long durational exercises to improve individual focus, stamina, and concentration, and Hamish Fulton’s Walking as Art practice, I embarked upon a 95-day private performance that combined walking to a body of water and immersing. I began on June 21, 2023, the summer solstice and ended on September 23, 2023, the fall equinox.
I established several data collection points:
- location
- temperature of the water
- temperature of the air
- time of day
- companions: human, animal, insect
- engagement of time through observation
- the complex relationship between living things and their environment
This data was recorded daily in this logbook, from which text and image are being harvested for A Water Book 23.
I mostly immersed in Roaring Brook, about a mile from my home. This body of water ranged in temperature from 52-62F. Other bodies of water I dipped into were warmer, mid-high 60’s, low 70’s, and a pool that topped out in the 80’s. We take the temperature of a human or animal when we are concerned about their health. What does the temperature of these water holes tell me? Without data from previous years for comparison, perhaps nothing. Yet the act of checking and recording implies a question about the health of these waterways, the lifeline of our planet earth.
This practice is part of my larger examination into the idea of wilderness mindset. My short definition of wilderness mindset is being present to the unpredictability of life, a concept I developed through my walking practice. When one deliberately seeks the uncomfortable-- resiliency, perseverance, confidence, and fortitude get exercised. What is done “alone” in this context can also be framed as private performance, an act of endurance in the ongoing care for the body, soul, and planet earth.
I ask you, what are your private performances? What are the things you do nearly ritualistically to care for your body, soul, and planet earth?
