Video documentation: André Wulf. Edit: iRo/LATERNA

Tree Talks practice - Maple
By LATERNA / Marianne Skjeldal and Inger-Reidun Olsen, in collaboration with Ingvild Langgård (2018-2021), Margrethe Pettersen (2021-2022),

Tree Talks practice was part of LATERNAs long term art-project CoSA-Concernig the Spiritual in Art, Part 2 (2018-2022)

From 2018-2022 through all four seasons, the Tree Talks project will visit four old, prominent and venerable city trees in Oslo. The tallest trees towering the urban landscape were planted over 200 years ago. They have seen the city change and grow, in parallel to their own roots.Through meditation and other methods to awake the sensuous, we spend time and enter dialogue with each tree.

LATERNA invited four other artists, one for each tree, to join the practice; Terje Tjøme Mossige, Fernanda Branco, Pernille Bønkan and Ingvild Langgård/Margrethe Pettersen. In addition, Sara Rönnbäck and Daniel Slåttnes are involved in meeting all four trees throughout the period, as well as Per Platou and Ulrik Ibsen Thorsrud have come in at a later stage when realising our artistic responses. Based on the ‘conversations’ with each tree, we develop responses in the form of performative work that we invite the audience along to experience.  

LATERNA seeks out to find alternative entering points to choreography. Tree Talks strive to allow something to occur – rather than focusing on producing. Together we listen into what is present and experience a different spending of time.

Photos: LATERNA