soundscape composed of field recordings with hydrophone and pick-up microphone. Played during the open hours of the exhibition and performances.
Radina Kordova and Samantha Pellarini’s project at the Bierumer School, "Vida - Вода: hydroghosts and the murmurs we cannot sea", seeks to bridge their individual practices around themes of hydro feminism, water memory, ecological identity, repurposing materials, worldbuilding, and non-linear storytelling. Their work unfolds on the Bierum’s coastal landscape, where the murmurs of the sea, land, and local myths merge into a larger, interconnected narrative. Radina and Samantha build speculative realities where ecological memory and material decay tell stories. Through performative soundscapes, sculptures, and installations their work evolves with the landscape itself.
In the period between November and December '24, Radina and Samantha researched, gathered natural and reclaimed materials from the region’s coastlines, and connected with the local human and nonhuman surroundings. During their stay in the Bierumer School, they navigated through stories and experiences related to water and landscape. From field recording to hydro sounds, myths, material research, and foraging; each element captures and amplifies the voices of both human and non-human entities in relation to the area’s transformation.
Alongside their research and work period at the Bierumer School, Radina and Samantha followed a development trajectory program as part of the Cultuur & Natuur Network. Through cross-disciplinary collaborations with experts in the fields of landscape research, marine biology, water management, and biomaterial research.
A story told, whispered, by the underground hydrocommune. These are tiny creatures, like moss and clay, fish, and rocks, that travel together with water. Вода. Water speaks of its twists and turns, of its shallows and depths, like a living organism, sustaining land and people. Therе is a story that echoes, whispers, murmurs, and repeats. Is it a memory, a dream, or a reality? Fog rests on the ground, you want to follow the water but you cannot remember how. To hold water is to hold its memory. It's the same water, always the same, circulating, flowing into everything; you and me. We live in a world that modifies and changes itself daily, but when we leave, water will stay. Вода. Water always stays but will it remember us?
On this page, I have included the sculptural pieces I made for the exhibition. Inspired by our collective research, the works are connected through the BierumerSchool through silicone tubes. At the school's entrance, a metal pool rests, collecting water and holding natural artifacts— clay, moss, rocks, shells, wood, and minerals. Here the natural cycle of water occurs; falling from the sky, she finds a place to rest, only to evaporate slowly and return. During this period of rest, I wonder if the water communicates with her companions. I imagine she tells them stories from her endless memory. I try to listen to these tales which travel through the length of the tubes to reach a headpiece connected to their ends. Inspired by diving helmets and oyster shells, this headpiece acts as an amplifier. As I gather the sounds that emerge, I vocalize them, layering an abstract narrative. It is a performative action, which is activated once the headpiece is worn.
Water has existed long before us—she must remember many things. If we listen carefully to the world around us, we might hear her memories.
