Tree of Dawn: Translation as a Method

Aurora Del Rio

This research is part of my doctoral project Archetypes of Contamination, which focuses on the relationship between symbolic images and processes of environmental transformation. This exposition, Tree of Dawn, develops by looking for the correspondence between radioactive contamination and the traditional Latvian image of the Sun-Tree as found in the Dainas, an ancient form of poetry transmitted orally through songs. My artistic process uses a re-creation and re-interpretation of ritualistic practices. With a focus on radioactive contamination, my research looks at how the experience of contaminated spaces can be read through specific myths connected to the land to interfere with the creation of personal and collective realities. The exposition moves through methods of translation as a way of reflecting on the limits of knowledge, where translation is thought of in the wider senses of transposition, deciphering, decoding, and reading through.

Chromatography-related references

Ben Ford, Barbara Cook, David Tunbridge, & Pip Tilbrook. ”Using paper chromatography for assessing soil health in southwestern Australia”. Centre of Excellence in Natural Resource Management, University of Western Australia (2019). https://torbaycatchment.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Using-paper-chromatography-for-assessing-soil-health-compressed-1.pdf Accessed 07,17,2022

Maria Olga Kokornaczyk, Fabio Primavera, Roberto Luneia, Stephan Baumgarten & Lucietta Betti. “Analysis of soils by means of Pfeiffer’s circular chromatography test and comparison to chemical analysis results.” Biological Agriculture & Horticulture, 33:3, 143-157 (2017) DOI:10.1080/01448765.2016.1214889 Accessed 07,17,2022.

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Acknowledgments

This research would not have been possible without the help of collaborators. I would like to express my special gratitude to Daina Zalāne and Juris Zalāns who introduced me to Latvian mythology and helped me find material to start my research on the dainas. A special thank you to Ilze Ceļmillere, who accompanied my explorations of the lighthouse of Ainazi and experimented with her beautiful voice. A big thank you to prof. And researchers Gareth Law, Mirkka Sarparanta, Kerttuli Helariutta, Igor Prozheev and Kenichiro Mizohata from Helsinki University, for the important insights into radioactivity and the help with the formula. A heartfelt thank you to artist and friend Notorische Ruhestörung for composing the music through the decoding process. My warmest gratitude to Emīlija Berga and Jurģis Lūsis, who have revised the translations of the Dainas and worked with me to realize the performance, and to Sabiles mākslas, kultūras un tūrisma centrs in Latvia, for hosting us.A warmest thank you to the research group RAT from Aalto University, which accompanied and guided this project from the very beginning. Finally, thank you to Rucka residency (Latvia) and Eskus - Performance Art Centre (Finland) for offering a space in which this project could be developed.

Images from the soil chromatography workshop "Down to Earth II" at SOLU/Bioart Society, Helsinki 2022

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