Port to Port - Alisa Oleva - Opening March 9, 2022

Alisa Oleva

Port-to-Port, a project commissioned by Pier Projects focused in Felixstowe UK, presented a series of public art events inspired by walking in real-time and online. Multidisciplinary artist, Alisa Oleva was selected by a panel of residents and the resulting work included contributions by residents and others worldwide. To start, Alisa invited Felixstowe residents to describe local places that resonated with or held special memories for them. A map of personal landmarks was created that then shaped Alisa’s thinking and process. Inspired by the internationalism and dynamism of Felixstowe, as port, each of the descriptive writings collected locally was sent to someone living in a different port town. This person was invited to respond. This signaled a call for action that sparked a relay of transmitted memories and shaped an interconnected web among people living near and far. There were 25 exchanges across all corners of the globe, many of these featured “walks through sound”. Postcards and audio readings of these writings became symbolic of these locations ‘meeting’.

The photographs of the paired towns are overlaid in postcard form creating a visual hybrid of these places. Whilst the contributors are unlikely to meet face-to-face, they feel the presence of another person’s life elsewhere. Similarly, the audio was formed of mirrored recordings, with resident voices describing the memories and places locally and beyond Felixstowe.

Port-to-Port, as project, was comprised of a deep-listening workshop, two artist-led walks, a printed edition set of postcards, Slow Salon (an online discussion), and a live broadcast audiowalk featuring collected sound material and recordings. Cards: View the postcards in the exhibition. 

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