Teach Yourself to Fly
2024

As part of the Création en Cours residency

by the Ateliers Médicis 

Art education and ateliers / anthropology / performance / sound / photography

École élémentaire José Barau
Sainte-Suzanne
La Réunion

Teach Yourself to Fly is a multifaceted project focused on the rich ecosystem and multiculturalism of La Réunion. As an exploration of the biophilia hypothesis, I studied the correlations between humans and nature in this challenging environment. This project was consciously developed with ecological sustainable principles.  

I established valuable connections with agents of sustainable development by exploring the territory and exchanging with its habitants — from urban populations to those in the remote wilderness. I learned about their ties to nature, their folklore, and culinary traditions. Plus the positive and challenging aspects of their daily lives. I recorded sounds of birdsong, rain storms at the end of the Austral summer, the passage of the wind through heavy trees, and the omnipresent bodies of water. I further documented my journey in analog photos and text. 

An important aspect of the project was a series of meditation, voice, and breathing workshops that I transmitted to 10-year-old students. We followed Pauline Oliveros’ Sonic Meditations (1971), intended to cultivate community, self-awareness and emotional health through listening and music-making. We enhanced these atmospheric experiments by layering loops of our voices and other environmental sounds to create “sound ecosystems.” 

We also practiced corporeal material from my studies at les Beaux-Arts de Paris with Emmanuelle Huynh and my mentors at the Centre National de la Danse. These trust-building exercises included making functional structures with our bodies, sensorial movement improvisation, and collective massage.   

My objective was for the students to develop environmental awareness. Thus, we reflected frequently on the importance of ecology and conservation. This dialogue was supported with school trips including La Cité du Volcan, La Vanilleraie (a sustainable vanilla producer) and Kelonia, a sea turtle rescue and education facility.  

The rewards of this residency have been paramount. The students and I worked with performance art, sound, and meditation to reinterpret an ecosystem in the image of their habitat and awaken a sense of care for nature.  

There is great potential for ecological action in La Réunion. Art is a phenomenal tool to communicate these urgent issues of our world. This residency granted me invaluable experience and confidence as an ambassador for these efforts.