Support material - video and audio
Anthropic Augmentation By Caroline Packham Collaborations, Glow 2018, Central Park Malvern.
Anthropic Augmentation is a projection performance work exploring an imagined future memoir of the Birrarung (Yarra River).
It is the year 2030 and Birrarung/Yarra has been granted human rights to enhance their protection. Who are they and what has been their journey? If elements of the environment are granted human rights how might this impact environmental health and climate action? How might we reconsider rights and existence? What is Birrarung’s story and how might we care for them? The audience was invited to participate in this interactive performance by writing letters to Birrarung in the year 2030 during the performance. Our Transcendent Posties delivered these letters to the river in a spoken word ceremony.
This work was developed in response to the new Yarra River Protection (Wilip-gin Birrarung murron) Act 2017. This Act provides a new framework and expanded community involvement in caring for the Birrarung/Yarra. It combines traditional owner knowledge with modern river management practices and established the Birrarung Council, a legal entity with an advisory role in caring for the river. In a first for Victoria the Act includes Woi-wurrung language. Anthropic Augmentation goes beyond river management mechanisms in this Act by contemplating the river having human rights and so legal standing in relation to their health and protection.
Concept, animation, video and projection by Caroline Packham. Projection performance: Minna Lappalainen, Nick Wilson, Lachlan Plain, Aidan Min, Erin Hall Transcendent Postie: Shane Savage. Community Dancers: Andi Coventon (Skate Odyssey); TJ Riddell; Minna Lappalainen, Music/sound credits: Metre-10, Noel Griffin, Steve Combs, Podington Bear, Nctrnm, Soft and Furious, Lobo Loco, Nick Wilson. Project Partners This project was seeded by The City of Stonnington and initially developed for Glow Winter Arts Festival 2018.
Human x Human Concept and video by Caroline Packham, Live-streamed dance by Minna Lappalainin, projection performance by Nick Wilson. Projection video excerpts, dance by Emma Riches and Stephane Hisler, including music by Cold Hands Warm Heart (Genevieve Fry), full credits on video notes.
Beginning at the start of the universe Human x Human explores the evolution of nature and society, sensing connection and change in the body and the power of collective human action. Community dance workshops were held online during Covid lockdowns. We only had a brief opportunity to meet in person to film these dance sequences, which are mostly improvised with minimal rehearsal. Lockdowns prevented further development and production refinement and led to roaming projection performances being cancelled.
THEY ARE A BAY
This video includes an image of the projection installation at Kingston Arts Centre, Vic and excerpts from the video work (nb the high colour saturation is to enhance projection design). The last clip includes music by Genevieve Fry.
They are a Bay is a future visual memoir of Nairm / Port Phillip Bay. It reflects on Nairm’s long life. From their youth, through the turbulence of industrialisation and climate change, to a future where they’ve been granted human rights and are loved and cared for as friend and kin of fellow humans, flourishing in harmony. If elements of the environment are granted human rights or alternate legal rights that rigorously protect the health and safety of nature, how might this impact climate action and ecosystem well-being? Could this evoke expanding and deepening relationship to nature as a friend to care for, rather than as a resource to exploit? The community was invited to participate by writing letters to the future Bay. These letters were incorporated into a final iteration of the projection work.
They Are a Bay was presented at The Bridge Kingston Arts Centre in 2021-22.
Concept, animation, video and projection design by Caroline Packham
Choreography and dance by Stéphane Hisler
Additional dance by Minna Lappalainen
Music by Cold Hands Warm Heart, Metre 10, Noel Griffin, Nctrnm
Climate Spiral graphics by Ed Hawkins https://www.climate-lab-book.ac.uk/spirals/
Kindly supported by The City of Kingston and Kingston Arts Centre