1 #practices in presence (2023)
2 #reasons to stay (2024)
3 #a bird a bird (2025)
4 #place of peace (2025)
5 #the ancestor’s call (2026)
Each piece in this series is part of the ongoing project Field of Disappearance, dedicated to stillness and transparency. In If only I could be here now, several aspects of presence, listening and desire in relation to stillness are contemplated into form. For many years I’ve performed in silence, without music or text, or only with music performed and created live simultaneously. In these pieces i worked differently.
Here’s some material from the version #reasons to stay, 2024, in which i work with poetry, songs (recorded and sung live), dance and the need for listening for stillness and the urgency for peace. Also #a bird a bird, an excerpt with one of my own songs (recorded). In 2025 I returned to performing in silence with #place of peace. In 2026, I’m allowing the forms that come from my Indonesian blood and practice be part of my dancing, also in this European part of the world. In each of these pieces, I learn more about musicality, which seems to be essential for the solo work Field of Disappearance that I work towards.
text from 2 #reasons to stay:
Hello
blood and bones
we made it here
so far so good
in the body
before the heart is formed
first there is a space
a welcoming
even before being born
photo black and white by Arnaud Beelen Photography @tictacartcentre
Excerpt of 2: If only i could be here now (practices in presence) | #reasons to stay, first performed and filmed at Tictac Art Centre, Brussels, B, February 2024. The song Place of Peace is written and sung by JR Rhodes with Wayne Horvitz on piano.
Excerpt of 3: If only I could be here now (practices in presence) | #a bird a bird | 2025
4: #place of peace takes place at onCe festival in Freiburg, 21 May 2025
A return to dancing in silence.
5: #the ancestor’s call, at Tictac Art Centre, Brussels, 19 February 2026
Including Indonesian influences and blood line in a ceremonial performance setting
#the ancestor’s call | photos by @ArnaudBeelen @tictacartcentre