Presentation

Eliot Moleba: Final PhD appraisal

Eliot Moleba's PhD artistic research Alternative Histori[es]: A Place Where Something Happened presents two events as part of the doctoral artistic result, The Things We Left Behind and The Monu(mo)ment Series

Main supervisor: Jesper Halle

Co-supervisor: Farnaz Arbabi

The PhD artistic research Alternative Histori[es]: A Place Where Something Happened has focused on narrative accounts of Norwegians who self-identify with a ‘multicultural and/or immigration background(s)’, to explore how their (hi)stories can be woven into the tapestry of the contemporary Norwegian public memory and story. In the words of King Harald V’s now most famous welcome speech during the Royal Couple’s Garden party (2016):

Above all, Norway is its people. Norwegians come from North Norway, Central Norway, Southern Norway – and all of the other regions. Norwegians have immigrated from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Poland, from Sweden, Somalia and Syria.

It is fitting, perhaps, that following from the King’s words, this artistic research project then asks how can the stories of all Norwegians be reflected in its public inscriptions, including stories of Norwegians who have immigrated from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Poland, from Sweden, Somalia and Syria?

The final appraisal presents two events as part of the doctoral artistic result.

1. The Things We Left Behind

Synopsis:

Regardless of our varied reasons to migrate, the journey always begins with packing. While some might have the luxury of time and resources to contemplate what to bring, others only have a moment’s notice to take what they can. This LARP invites you to traverse the layers of things we lose and gain, the challenges and opportunities we meet in the process of migrating.

What will you pack when you leave? 

Players will play members of a collective trying to balance their personal needs with the needs of the collective. Throughout the larp, the characters will have to flee different situations, forcing them to leave many of their possessions behind each time. With time working against them, players will have to decide what to pack or leave behind.

You don’t need prior experience to join us. The design is easy to play for someone who hasn't done it before. Just bring your curiosity.

How does it work? There is a workshop before the larp to introduce the setting and techniques, the larp is followed by a debrief to collect feedback on the experience. Everything is opt-in. Please wear comfortable clothes.

Where:

Scene 4, Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo

Date and Time:

24th June at 13.00 – 16.00
26th June at 13.00 – 16.00
28th June at 13.00 – 16.00

There is limited space available to play the LARP on each day, please register your interest by emailing eliomole@khio.no. If you have any questions about the larp, feel free to reach out as well.

Creative team:

Written/developed: Eliot Moleba
Facilitation: Nadja Lipsyc
Scenography: Lisa Birkenbach
Documentation: Andre Percy Katombe

2. The Monu(mo)ment Series

Et kunstnerisk konsept og prosjekt utviklet av Eliot Moleba.

Monu(mo)ments har som mål å skape minnesmerker basert på historier fra vanlige nordmenn med flerkulturell bakgrunn. Historiene setter søkelys på en hendelse som har skjedd i det offentlige rom, og har som fellesnevner at de opplevdes som et livsendrende øyeblikk. Til minne om hendelsen blir hver historie omgjort til et monument og installeres på stedet der hendelsen fant sted. Levde erfaringer blir fysisk og følelsesmessig innskrevet i og gjennom landskapet.

Et monu(mo)ment i denne sammenhengen er altså ikke noe statisk, men en hendelse eller et øyeblikk som kontinuerlig vokser og utvides for hvert besøk og spor folk etterlater seg. Denne lagdelingen av øyeblikk gjør at monumentet ikke bare blir et minne om en spesifikk fortid, men et øyeblikk i stadig utvikling, både i nåtid og fremtid. Ifølge Moleba handler dette om at det ikke bare det opprinnelige øyeblikket, men også hvordan vi velger å forholde oss til det. Vi kan snakke til og inn i øyeblikket.

During the course of the project, Moleba has collected over 50 stories, three of which have now been turned into physical monu(mo)ments :"In Her Shoes", "Kjersti's Line" and "Rico On The Run".

It is these three monu(mo)ments of the series that will be offered as part of a guided tour. The guide for the tour will be Stefán Hallur Stefánsson.

Date: 24-28 June.
Location: Meeting point is at Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo.

The guided tours will run daily from 10am-12pm and 1pm-3pm. A maximum of 5 people can participate at a time. To avoid disappointment, booking is essential.

For bookings: info@monumoments.no

The monu(mo)ments series is a project dedicated to turning stories of Norway’s diversity into interactive, performative works of public art.

The work is produced by Transcultural Arts Production (TrAP). The work has been carried out with financial support from KORO's Local Community Scheme (LOK).

Creative team:

Eliot Moleba, artistic and project leader
Brynjar Bjerkem, producer
Sakib Saboor, website development

Participating artists:

Alf Ollett,
Jad Khoury, artist/designer
Sara Guldmyr, co-artist/designer
Sander van der Valk, designer, builder, and graffiti artist.

Working group: The working group consists of Kiyoshi Yamamoto, Nicole Rafiki, and Mads Pålsrund.

For more information about the project: https://trap.no/prosjekt/monumoments https://www.monumoments.no/