Such a beautiful day

performance
In Zo’n mooie dag (Such a beautiful day), Nowak is lying on his deathbed in a cellar. He tries to organize his thoughts before it is too late. In a fever dream, he sees his childhood friend Milena. She is dead, but for him she is still alive. They drink tea and bicker like an old couple about everyday things such as child murder, genocide, and insanity. Milena then pulls him along in a maelstrom back to their childhood, to a large forest where she was raped and murdered.

design
We create a big nest. Just as an animal withdraws into its lair to die, so Nowak lies on his deathbed. The branches resemble large bones, and when illuminated in a different way, they more resemble veins. It is a mental space, not a location, but it does refer to the ominous place in the forest. We too disappear for days at a time into the forest, where we select the perfect branches. They have to be old, but in a special way; with a whitish wash, or with a mysterious craquelure. And always with a good twist, giving each branch a beautiful special quality.