Seaman and Treadmill / Another way (2009)
Text: Sinziana Ravini
In the novel In Search of Lost Time, Marcel Proust writes that to travel is not about searching for new landscapes, but about searching for new perspectives. This is an extraordinary illustration of the many dimensions of a journey. To travel does not only permit us to cross geographic distances or to overcome external obstacles. Traveling also involves internal excursions. These journeys can neither be planned nor controlled, but conditions can be formed
In her work, the artist Ann-Sofi Sidén has always investigated the intra-human sphere, from a cultural, aesthetic as well as gender theoretical perspective. Over the last years, man's mobility has also become an important aspect of her work. In 2002 she rode 250 miles on horseback through Texas. A trip that normally takes three hours by car now lasted for 25 days. During the slow journey, Sidén discovered new sides of both herself and of the American surroundings, especially the macho culture which views horse riding as a predominantly male habit. The romantic wildlife ride through old rodeo trails, multi-lane highways, sleepy suburbs as well as rice- and cotton fields developed into a hetero chronological journey, blending different temporalities. The trip resulted in the video 3 MPH (From Horse to Rocket) (2002), a floating panorama that intersects various time fragments: the human, the horse, the departure from San Antonio and the final destination Lyndon B Johnson's Space Centre.
In the autumn of 2008, Sidén invited her students and colleagues at the Royal Institute of Art in Stockholm, to participate in a joint journey to Wanås. Each participant chose how they would get there, but had to take into account the organizational, conceptual and ethical principle to travel without the use of artificial fuels. The aim of Another Way was to investigate a traditional ritual of freedom -- the slow journey -- in a modern context, and then find a way to process this experience.
On September 6, 2009, 16 students and two teachers departed from Stockholm. Some chose to travel in pairs, others alone. Some chose to cycle, ride or sail, while others walked. By taking imaginary roads, some students chose to question the conceptual framework of the project. After holding a collective press conference on the island of Skeppsholmen in Stockholm they started the 370 mile journey. Their roads were quickly divided, but communication with each other and the world around them was possible through a mutual blog (enannanvag.blogspot.com) where they published sound recordings, films, photographs, drawings and texts.
Klas Eriksson chose to stage a fictional journey in his studio. Every day he walked for four hours on a non-electrical treadmill, wearing a sailors costume symbolizing the lonely sailor out at sea. The stationary journey deals with the fictional transforming into the pure personal imaginary trip. Eriksson is particularly interested in expressions of the benefit of art and relates this to his own experiences during the trip. Aspects of the gray zone between reality, truth and fiction are evident in his work. At the opening Eriksson will perform a storytelling performance on a bench. The treadmill, which carried him the 370 miles, is shown in the Konsthall together with his sailor suit and sound recordings from his walk.