BREATHING TOGETHER II

"Breathing Together II" makes manifest some of the poetic undercurrents that have tempered the residential phase of the first cohort of the TBA21–Academy Ocean Space fellowship. It is hinged on the shared experience of research as a gradual unfolding rooted in an elongated present, a form of floatation that sways between points of existing reference and departure and accommodates the dissection of embodied revelations.

Fish Parasitologist, Chahinez Bouguerche, who has been working on gills parasitic flatworms, using an integrative approach combining morphology and DNA, will speak about a special parasite (hyperparasite) that does not only use the fish as a host but uses a parisitic crustacean of the fish as a host. This triple association is called hyperparasitism. Artists Ohan Breiding and Shoghig Halajian revisit a series of their video works from 2015-2019 which, in the context of their ongoing visual meditations on floating in the aftermath of natural-man-made disasters, may be re-conceived as an estuary. Finally, Abiba Coulibaly, who has been expanding, through her investigations, various formulations of the Black Mediterranean, facilitates a screening of Les Sauteurs by Abou Bakar Sidibé, Moritz Siebert & Estephan Wagne, provoking reflections on what it means to decolonize borders and breath.

5.30 pm - "Tell me what you eat, I'll tell you what it is! A study of hyperparasite Cyclocotyla bellones (Monogenea, Platyhelminthes)". A lecture with Ocean Fellow Chahinez Bouguerche and Professor Jean-Lou Justine, parasitologist (National Museum of Natural History, Paris).

Monogenean flatworms are among the first parasites described from Mediterranean waters. Unfortunately, molecular data of this species are always lacking whilst specimens from this locality are needed to verify further records from the northern and southern Mediterranean. During her research stay in Venice, Ocean Fellow Chahinez Bouguerche was inspired to collect some specimens of various fishes, to proceed with the DNA barcode and genetic studies that may reveal the existence of cryptic, new species.

The project implemented by Chahinez Bouguerche during the Ocean Fellowship 2021 is untitled “Monogenean parasites of marine fishes off the southern Mediterranean: how much do we really know?”. In this lecture, Dr. Bourguerche together with Jean-Lou Justine (parasitologist and zoologist) a professor at the National Museum of Natural History in Paris, will present a lecture on results regarding a particular hyperparasite, followed by research interests developed in Venice.

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7-8 pm - Break: Aperitivo in the cloister.

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8 pm - Ohan Breiding and Shoghig Halajian: video series. Presented and selected by Ocean Fellows Ohan Breiding and Shoghig Halajian

Ohan Breiding and Shoghig Halajian present a series of video works from 2015-2019 to contextualize their research at Ocean Space within a larger trajectory of their moving image work. The program mixes documentary, experimental filmmaking, and autobiography to explore themes of place, loss, and familial and social belonging. It spans divergent geographies—from Orlando, Florida to Glarus, Switzerland—and connects these locales through the personal encounter.

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9 pm - "Les Sauteurs" (Abou Bakar Sidibé, Moritz Siebert & Estephan Wagne, 1h and 22'). Film Screening presented and selected by Ocean Fellow Abiba Coulibaly. Film in French with Italian subtitles.

An outstanding example of participatory cinema, filmed entirely by a Malian migrant (Abou Bakar Sidibé) living in a makeshift camp in the mountains of Northern Morocco, where Africa shares a land border with Spain. Sidibé was given recording equipment by two Scandinavian filmmakers, erasing to an extent many of the uncomfortable issues surrounding voyeurism and positionality common to these kinds of documentaries. As Sidibé documents the austere conditions around him and the fraught planning regarding crossing the border, we also witness his fondness for auteurship develop. Having first expressed indifference towards the camera (which, in his precarious situation could be sold to make some much-needed cash) we observe his real time development as a filmmaker growing to enjoy and experiment with the craft. As this process unfolds, themes central to the ‘Black Mediterranean’ such as the unfinished decolonial project and the manipulation of the natural world in reinforcing border regimes are compellingly addressed.

BIOGRAPHIES OF THE FELLOWS AND MENTORS

Participation is free but reservation is required at this link.

In line with the rules to prevent the spread of Covid-19, the capacity of Ocean Space has been reduced to guarantee a safe experience.

Masks must be worn inside Ocean Space (properly covering both nose and mouth) and hands must be sanitized with the provided sanitizer upon entrance. A temperature check will be carried out at the entrance.