Restless Spirits
2021 | Yeon Yeji
Restless Spirits
The Koreans who settled in Far East Soviet Russia called themselves, ‘Goryo saram’- ‘Goryo’ referring to ‘Korea’ of that time, and ‘Saram’ meaning ‘people’. ‘Korean People.’
According to Korean Traditions, the deceased whose bodies are not buried, roam around as spirits, unable to pass to the other side- hence the title of my performance work: [Restless Spirits].
[Restless Spirits] will be an interdisciplinary performance art piece with its basis rooted in Korean Shamanic rituals; a prayer and well-wishing for these restless spirits who have passed away from the displacement in the form of ritual. To the soundscape of my musical composition and videos comprised of interviews from the Goryo survivors of the 1937 displacement as well as their children and grandchildren, I will perform a Korean Traditional ritual comprised of prayer and slow, meditative dancing.
Personally, Art and Spirituality are synonymous and interchangeable. In Korean Traditional Shamanism, dance and music is the key to creating altered state of consciousness- which I believe is the collateral phenomenon of creativity and creation- as is the case in many other sects and tribes of religions, spirituality, shamanism and worship all around the world.
Thinking Partner:
Stelios Kallinikou
Stelios Kallinikou’s practice intersects space & place, time & history, as manifestations of multiple interweaving discourses of meaning. He is the co-founder of Thkio Ppalies Project Space, based in Nicosia, Cyprus.
