fragment 22 the boy who is sacrificed
jakarta (id)/ düsseldorf, 30th september 2021
performance lecture by and with irwan ahmett + tita salina
since 2018 ahmett and salina routinely walk for two weeks along the north coast of jakarta each year. they document both digitally and bodily memories by optimizing all sensory information as the manifestation of a pilgrimage to a sinking megacity in asia. of the many memories there is one that keeps coming back for about five times a day – like the prayer calling in islam, the memory of a drowning mosque. the green mosque named al waladun (the boy) was sacrificed, cut off from the world, tragically separated by a sea wall erected to save the capital that is being swallowed by the earth. the construction of al waladun is broken by the tidal waves. no human activities in it, only colonies of invasive marine life attached to the floor and walls making the sacred space emit mysterious sounds.
irwan ahmett and tita salina are self-taught artist duo based in jakarta. their initial work is to place the imagination through performative intervention in the midst of chaotic public space of megapolitan jakarta, which faces the dilemma of uncontrolled urbanization and pollution. the development of networks in art and activist circles has encouraged their artistic practice to progress toward the more profound and deeper circumstances. they are currently working on a long-term project related to geopolitical turmoil in the ring of fire – pacific rim, the most prone region to natural disasters as well as traumatic consequences which is caused by the persistent ideological violence. they see their high mobility as the main vehicle to participate in residency programs, research, field study and exhibitions especially in specific areas, which are paradoxical such as some heavenly yet deadly beautiful places on earth. irwan and tita wanted to find answers about planetary anxieties in regard to human existence by means of evolutionary perspective and to produce knowledge through arts related to injustice, humanity and ecology.