Chapter 3: How heavy is time?
As part of Common Grounds: Story / Heritage
6 March - 11 July 2020
Audio version (soundscape) of original film conceived by Kanitha Tith
Camera and sound by Davy Chou
This performance took place by the 200-year-old platanus tree in Casco’s shared courtyard in the heart of Utrecht’s museum quarter premieres on Friday, 5 June 2020. Read more via https://casco.art/en/program/chapter3
Watch the film here: https://youtu.be/vs0e05Bc_Tc
Kanitha Tith would like to thank Binna Choi, Staci Bu Shea, and Marianna Takou and the rest of the Casco team; Davy Chou; Catalina González; Donghwan Kam; and the band Dengue Fever.
Casco Art Institute: Working for the Commons
https://casco.art/
Speech transcript:
["Uku" by Dengue Fever plays softly in the background.]
[Kanitha is kneeling in the courtyard facing the direction of the tree. Kanitha begins speaking and the camera is near her face.]
[minute 7.17]
I don’t think I am a verbal person but my gesture can show you the gratitude and pay respect to you, because since you have been here and you have seen many things happen, since your existence, and I think the way you are breathing is to share with us, as a kind of thing that walk with two legs, but I don’t think that having movement can bring us further as we thought.
The air you absorb, no matter what air it is, I think you always find a way to breathe, in and out, with… with you flexi-[stutter], with your flexibility. Even though I cannot pronounce it well. But I know, your flexibility is always there. And I feel that you always find a way to continue to root here.
And now, you are already 150 years old.
So, I am really pleased to meet you, in person.
And... [places hand over heart]
My name is Kanitha.
[camera slowly moves back. Kneeling, Kanitha bows in the direction of the tree.] [10.00]
--
[rain patters against a plastic raincoat, Kanitha is speaking to the small group around her]
[17.12]
We witness for what it is now.
[17.19]
If you have questions you can ask me.
[17.33]
I think sometimes when I do this, it’s more like, alone by myself. From the beginning I don’t feel it’s a kind of meditation, but then after that I feel like yeah, it’s really meditation but I don’t know because my hand is coiling and then after that, after awhile, my brain is traveling like this [motions a spiral with her finger].
But after a while I enjoy it a lot. Like, ok… What could bring me to this situation? Questioning around what’s happening in the world. Why I exist in this world.
Then after that it can be more fun… I like to speak with my cat, and I feel like, am I just pretending that I speak with my cat or what? Something like that. [laughs] Because the cat just keeps looking at you [looks gazingly above and softly blinks] like “ohh." But you know it’s your own projection, right? [laughs] [18.45]
[20.44] [thundering clouds and patter of rain on leaves]
Isn’t it amazing if you imagine yourself that you are here for a long time, and you keep rooting and growing, but at the same time you feel like, you admit something, how do you say it... you see everything. I feel this is really amazing that I have this time to spend with the tree. I never thought that one day I could do that. Because I feel more like… [trails off] [21.18]
[21.27] Can you see something different?
Can we listen to something that we never listen to?
Can we just take time to look at things we never really pay attention to?
Something like that.
I try out to see that I never been working outside like this too. So this moment, I bring my sculpture out, my wire out, to see what is happening here, and now I feel that everything is combined. Which means that, I wish so much to have a sunny day. But then there’s wind, there’s rain, there’s you, there’s the tree here, the ground, and everything, it’s combining!
[22.25] Sorry, my English is not really good. I would express well in my own language but I would like to share with you also.
