Panels from chapter one of The Book of Journeys
“Where my skin first touched the earth”
– this is the core concept of The Book of Journeys. It is a multi-stage project in collaboration with Dan Hefty which examines modern journeys of necessity – those of economic migrants, refugees, and the victims of human trafficking. All of these are linked by the state of limbo that the participants exist in, of not belonging, of being displaced from what and where is home. Each stage – or chapter as we use the idea of “the book” as a device – comprises an interdisciplinary installation and a book. This two-pronged strategy we feel allows us to reach a wider potential audience and to explore our subject matter far more deeply and in a different way in the latter. The research and installation components of chapter one which dealt with economic migration from Senegal were completed in 2013 and we are now beginning research in Lebanon with Syrian refugees there for chapter two.
A key element to all chapters of the project is that of the weaving together of the past and the present. Storytelling is as old as humankind; since the beginning of time we have transmitted information by creating narratives – both oral and visual, as evidenced by cave paintings such as those in Lascaux. We continue that tradition by using words and images – both photography and moving images – as well as sound.
The project can be followed at http://www.lelivredevoyages.org/
– this is the core concept of The Book of Journeys. It is a multi-stage project in collaboration with Dan Hefty which examines modern journeys of necessity – those of economic migrants, refugees, and the victims of human trafficking. All of these are linked by the state of limbo that the participants exist in, of not belonging, of being displaced from what and where is home. Each stage – or chapter as we use the idea of “the book” as a device – comprises an interdisciplinary installation and a book. This two-pronged strategy we feel allows us to reach a wider potential audience and to explore our subject matter far more deeply and in a different way in the latter. The research and installation components of chapter one which dealt with economic migration from Senegal were completed in 2013 and we are now beginning research in Lebanon with Syrian refugees there for chapter two.
A key element to all chapters of the project is that of the weaving together of the past and the present. Storytelling is as old as humankind; since the beginning of time we have transmitted information by creating narratives – both oral and visual, as evidenced by cave paintings such as those in Lascaux. We continue that tradition by using words and images – both photography and moving images – as well as sound.
The project can be followed at http://www.lelivredevoyages.org/
