location: THe Tree House, Ikoyi Lagos

A performance by James Notin for TRACIAN MEIKLE's 'Water Laboratory: Experiments in Swimming and Drowning' at the Treehouse

Brief: Positioning humans as water, a migratory yet fixed being, the performance 'Òmùgọ̀ ta’mi n’kókó' is an abstracted conversation on the rigidity and disservice to self that characterizes the rituals and routines of our individualist age. The audience will be challenged to shift from the role of observer-witness to collaborating performer, sharing knowledge and labour in a call to communal care and healing practices, with the desire to create flow within and without.

The performance is the first in a series of experiments curated by Tracian. Tracian Meikle convenes during her curatorial residency at the Treehouse as a part of the 'Water Laboratory: Experiments in Swimming and Drowning' – a space of artistic experimentation and creative ideation that explores the watery disruptions and connections of people of African descent. Invited Artists and thinkers are invited to experiment together on the water in both form and utility. What does the flow of water teach us? In what ways can we afford more fluidity? What is hidden in the solution? What are the ripples we are experiencing in the wake of water migrations? What does it mean for those who have been washed ashore?