Swedish local camp

For the Swedish local camp, the participants went on a journey by rented boat to an island in Stockholm Archipelago. In the latest decades, the island has been used as a place for disadvantaged children who spend their time there in the summer camps. The buildings on the island have not been renovated and have remained untouched since the 18th century. Inside, there are neither radiators nor running water. In such conditions authentic for the 18th century, the Swedish team of mediators experienced the workshops dealing with senses and body memory: food memories workshop, blindfold workshop, and a silent retreat. 

 

Workshops were developed by the artist Emmeli Person. Emmeli was aware of the concepts and ideas that are central for the team in their work with the artist Apolonija Sustersic for the art production. Emmeli tried to incorporate some of these elements in the workshops that she created. 

 

One of the workshops was led by visual and performance artist La Nash Caldera and devoted to food memory as food can be a trigger of deeper feelings, emotions, states of mind, and body. Every participant was given 100 Swedish crowns and asked to buy ingredients to cook a dish. Afterward, the team and facilitators discussed the thoughts and emotions connected to the individual food memories. 

 

Another workshop was «A silent retreat». Participants went to a remote location on the island and they were to remain silent, even while having lunch. The idea behind the workshop was to contemplate how one can explain and talk without using words. It also had to do with mediation since it helped to explore how we can use different senses when one of them is shut off. How do you mediate when one of your senses is shut off?