Sword Mountain
Performed by Kiani Ferris and Jessica Floyd.
Sliding scale $10-15, no one turned away for lack of funds
Join us Thursday, June 20th at 6:30 pm for Sword Mountain, a performance choreographed by Kiani Ferris. This piece is in conjunction with the current exhibition Vox XVIII: Oil of Milk.
Guided by Buddhist ritual dances, ikebana (Japanese floral arrangement), and fresh strawberries, this duet investigates nonverbal communication through the reshaping of silence. Rhythmic bodily movement is believed to beckon ancestors in Japanese Buddhist Obon ceremonies. Sword Mountain heightens choreography inspired by the traditional Obon dance “Tanko Bushi” (Coal Miner’s Dance). Here relatively simple movements that mimic coal mining are modes of transcendental contact.
The performers navigate these manipulated gestures amidst a field of fresh strawberries and kenzan that punctuate the floor. Kenzan, literally translating to “sword mountain” (剣山), are sharp objects used in ikebana, wherein plant and flower stems are pushed into the metal spikes according to mathematical and aesthetic calculations.
Sword Mountain confronts presence and absence through gestures of festivity and mourning. Not only is the performance an act of memorial, but a choreographed sculpture spun from secretive languages gently asking to be deciphered.
ARTIST BIOs:
Kiani Ferris (b. 1996, Seattle, WA) is a Brooklyn based artist and educator. She received her BFA from The Cooper Union School of Art in 2020 and studied at Kyoto Seika University in 2018. She is currently a member of Trestle Art Space in Brooklyn, NY and is a recipient of the 2023 Liu Shiming Foundation Art Grant. Ferris has recently exhibited at NARS Foundation (Brooklyn, NY; 2023), The Clemente (New York, NY; 2023) and The Godwin-Ternbach Museum (Flushing, NY; 2022). Ferris organizes and authors exhibitions and public programming throughout New York. Recent curatorial projects include “Deliverance” at Trestle Art Space (Brooklyn, NY; 2023) and “Brooklyn Voices” at Brooklyn Children’s Museum (Brooklyn, NY; 2022). She has collaborated with organizations such as Brooklyn Children's Museum, Brooklyn Public Library, The Center for Brooklyn History, Brooklyn Chinese American Association, NYC Department of Education, Friends of Brower Park, and The Lenape Center, and more. www.kianiferris.com
Jessica Floyd (b.1996, Jacksonville, FL) is a Newark-based artist. She received her BFA from The Cooper Union School of Art in 2020 and studied at Malmö art academy in 2017. She has recently exhibited at Gallery Aferro (Newark, NJ; 2023), OUTPOST (Copenhagen, DK; 2022), and Thorvaldsens Museum (Copenhagen, DK; 2021). Floyd’s practice conjoins painting with sculpture, writing, and performance. www.floydj.com