Peltojoki

(No barbed wire necessary)
PoW Camp in Lapland, Finland, 1941-1944.

Machine Embroidery on Linen
2015



Victory Day

Sound Intervention
2012



Victory Day is celebrated in the former Soviet Union to commemorate the Red Army's victory over the Nazi forces. Taking place on the 9th of May, every year the military parades, with the biggest one presented on the Red Square in Moscow, showcase what is advertised to be most advanced, (not quite so as it excludes the secret weapons) military might. Veterans are presented with gifts, flowers and tickets to celebratory events.

Over the years, the national holiday has become a disputed subject, as while extraordinary sums are being spent on the military propaganda, many of the veterans, the youngest being in their 80s, are surviving on the verge of poverty. Regarding the subject itself, countless literature has been written analysing, praising and doubting the decisions of Soviet generals.

Nonetheless, on the Victory day itself, it is a taboo to express any criticism. For the families of what is believed to be 170 million Soviet people who lost their lived in World War II, this day is sacred, holier than any religious or social events.

Presented in Ormston House on a busy street of Limerick, on May 9th 2012, the event included a creaky street speaker playing Soviet military marches and folk love songs. The songs were composed during the War, or soon after, and haven’t lost their popularity since, being played over and over again, every year, on the 9th of May


Molotov

2010



Under Siege 

Solo performance, duration 2 minutes
2011

Performance was developed during the workshop with artist Oscar McLennan and enacted at Dry performance night, the Loft, Limerick. The work interpreted the notions of fear, worry and self-distraction on a personal as well as global level. It was intended to communicate the paradox of security and fragility of home and the terrors of today’s world.

This un-lengthy performance presented the artist saying a chant in Russian language and attempting to squeeze a chicken egg between the hands. An egg, if pressed from either end, is impossible to crack. Yet at the end of the prayer it gave way, splashing all over the artist and the audience in the front row.


Dry Performance night, The Loft, Limerick City, February 2011.