Turbid Sweep 2023

2 hour durational single performance

at Drawspace , Sydney

August, 2023

Performance Turbid Sweep 2023. GoPro Still

Video Turbidocene 2023

excerpt Dur 3.13

produced by Daniel Pressart

Performance Turbid Sweep and video Turbidocene

was included in a group show , Materiality at Drawspace Sydney.

The performance piece titled Turbid Sweep (2023) was performed at the opening night of the exhibition, Materiality . Two protagonists wearing boiler suits and holding a white broom weaved through the crowd seeking out the floor-based motifs drawn in calcium carbonate and water and inspired by the wave-like structure of stromatolites. Stromatolites, formations in aquatic environments consisting of sediment and microbial mats, serve as a source of inspiration for Coss's exploration of ‘stratigraphic thinking.’

These drawings left behind a delicate powder that was swept across the floor and collected at the rear of the gallery. The debris on the floor, including food items and dust were swept up, intermixed with the calcium carbonate, the material of stromatolite structures, and stored in a lab jar. This was placed on a shelf with the broom nearby for the duration of the exhibition as a remnant of the performance . The post-performative video work Turbidocene 2023 was projected above. The process of sweeping amongst the audience allows me to delve into the interconnectedness between human and other-than-human elements. By examining the assemblages of geological, moral, and political perspectives, ‘stratigraphic thinking’ speaks to the ways human agency is shaped by situated knowledge.

The performance challenged and transcended the conventional nature/culture divide, to present the possibility of the interconnections between humans and their environment.