Clara Projects that may or may not be made

0. NEO HIPPIES AND THE CRAVING FOR CONTEMPORARY SPIRITUALITY

What? (two sentences)

A video essay, comparing the 60s hippie movement to neo hippie movements and community festivals such as Burning man or Landjuweel. In this piece I wish to analyze the setting and ethical guidelines of such festivals and what they can facilitate as well as the duality of the hippocratic nature of these often privileged, whited movements.

Why make it?

Having been to Africa Burn last year, I have been constantly thinking back to this week in the South African desert and what I have experienced there. The principles of Burning man are what I would like to adapt to my daily life and believe that even outside this very extreme event on the other side of the world a lot can be learned from the setting created. I am also interested in how it compares to the 60s hippie movement and how that seemed to get way more public attention during that time. I am wondering; what is the modern political motors for this movement, compared to the Vietnam war for the 60s hippies in the US, and is it even a movement or rather only existing in selected settings? Lastly the question; How honest do participants life or can life after the principles and where does hypocrisy start?

Topics addressed can be: -The principles of burning man (radical inclusion, gifting, decomodification, radical self-reliance, radical self expression, communal effort, civid responsibility, leave no trace, participation, immediacy) -the act of burning/sitting around a fire -nudity -modern spirituality(the temple, psychedelics, meditation, ecstatic dance, ect…) -distance from digital world& concept of time

References:

Schapiro-Bliss, Elliott Landy-Woodstock Vision, Braiding Sweetgrass, Marco Kd-tagebuch eines Streuners, Hippie - Paolo Coelho

Workflow (two or three sentences) + Timetable

1/ Search for further references and understand the Zeitgeist of the 60s in comparison to now and how there is a critical view towards a spiritual free spirited lifestyle. (October-November 2023) 2/ Collect own material and reflect on focus of the topic + Decide for medium(documentary, video essay, photo book, scripted short film(humoristic?)) (September- November 2023) 3/ Bring together already existing material and shoot further; Shoot at Africa Burn (November 2023 - May 2024 5/ Edit (May-July 2024)

Relation to previous practice (two sentences, draw on Text on Practice) Documenting Amber and her lifestyle. Ideas of communal coexistence in my book “The ORKZ” Love for costumes and fantasy which is expressed strongly at Africa Burn.

Choices made

I want to bring more of my own character into my work, especially my own humor/childishness, as it is very marking for my character but rarely shines through in my work. I would also love to combine ceramic work/crafts with lens based work, but am not sure how well that will work with this idea. (Could make costumes for the festival though…)

Rapid prototypes/scratches they could be drawings, brief script, photos, mock ups, maquettes, collage &c

1/ Image taken by myself at Africa Burn 2022

2/ Mood Board of references

1. EARTH ARMY

What? Photo series/ book of an imaginary "Earth Army". In which humans from various backgrounds in various constellations stand as protectors of the natural world wearing ceramic masks inspired by figures from fantasy novels, folklore and fairytales that serve as protectors of nature as well.

How? Potentially the bodies will otherwise be naked, adding a layer of vulnerability as well as a reminder of our animal self. I also wish to note how nudity is still a taboo (possibly become one more and more~) and that when taking away a face and potentially easier recognition that it can help foster a normalisation of the body uncovered by clothing, as that itself represents the destruction of nature to me due to fast fashion and general over consumption. It is unclear to me which feeling I want to emit. Do I show these earth warriors while protecting nature spaces or in front of destroyed spaces or will they attack those and that which harms nature? Are they foraging and giving back to the soil? Will there be movement and scenes of community such as circle folk dances and other ritualistic approaches as such?

Workflow / Timetable 1// research creatures and war masks (September) 2// make masks(October-December) 3// plan locations and the bodies represented (and in what constellations and movements) (October-December) 4// organise photo/ video shoots (January-April) 5// Experiment with ways of exhibiting and presenting the work to add as much educational value as possible (magazine with interviews of who I see as "earths army?) (April-July)

Relation to previous practice The initial idea to work with masks came from my work being very beauty/portrait oriented. When taking away the face and possible glorification of a specific human and it's beauty, I see more possibilities to go deeper and see the body as it is and focus on what it does and represents.

I have been working with ceramics for around 2 years now and in the last years started dipping my toes further into the world of costume design and fashion design.

Making an imaginary global community and visualising ways of coexisting might stem from my focus on alternative ways of coexisting within communities, after living in a community and creating a photo book on such in 2021.

Fantasy novels have been a place of escapism since my childhood and I strive to bring in further notions of such, also as I experience strong emotions when being confronted with the symbolisms of the creatures represented in renaissance art.

A more performative aspect that might come in if I would also use video as medium is coming from my background in contemporary dance.

Choices made (two sentences) One choice made is to create a work that I see having a stronger sense of urgency that my previous works, especially when it comes to living a more mindful live in intimate, symbiosis with nature and each other.

I also want to push my own boundaries in creating a sense of discomfort in the viewer, which I tend to avoid.

In the coming year I wish to combine my work with ceramics with my lens based work. As such the final result will be a body of lens based work (either film&photography or only photography) that is exhibited together with props created from clay.

(The next idea I will pitch will relate to this as well, but in making a marionette from clay that gives a voice to nature)

2. PHOTO BOOK COLLABORATION CEDRIC

What ?

A photo book that explores the representation of intimacy through the eyes of two photographers, one male, one female, one based on nightlife documentation, on daylight scenes.

I have been thinking to co create with my good friend Cedric Veldhuis on an exhibition or book.

Our practices and characters describe very strongly our appreciation for those around us. Him rather in a nightlife/city setting, and me in a more soft daytime, nature setting.

Why make it?

Start a conversation on photographic documentation of people in their 20s by a female and male and how our work related to each other and relates to the status quo

Describe how it would be made: describe the stages needed to make it (Workflow)

1/ Collect visuals from our archives that express the general idea I/we wish to express.

2/ Try out how they work together and define the story line throughout the expo or book.

3/ produce further work together that aligns with the overlap of our practices

4/ Layout, trial prints, expo organizing(curating, event organization…)

5/ Sale/exhibiting of work

Timetable

Before September 2023: creating a draft/moodboard

September 2023 - December 2024: rounds of conversation, shoots, editing, collecting conversations to possibly add…

January 2024 - June 2024:finalize, print and exhibi2

3. UNCOMMON LOVE SHORT

What?

A (short) film that explores the fine lines between friendship love and romantic love and the importance of all human relationships.

I wish to make a film that feels authentic, that feels intimate, that shows nuances and the actual confrontations and lessons I find in my relationships on daily basics.

This I would like to see in an autobiographical-fiction narrative story in which I mix my own experiences with those of others and stories I would like to have visualised more.

I want it to feel tender, relatable, leading to self reflection and also just use my own humour more.

(A topic I would like to also include might be the influence of the privileged/constant moving lifestyle on relationships.)

Why make it?

I was missing different narratives of love in the film industry and realized what a toxic influence many movies had on my perception of love and relationships as a teenager. A narrative that is drenched by hardship, drama, fighting for each other, pain or unrealistic happy endings. No stories of fights over little-not-so-little aspects of daily life and facets of love with a queer perspective.

At least this is what I grew up with mostly. Now the film world is already shifting, with some of my favorite examples being “Close” by Lukas Dhont, “Something you Said Last Night” by Luis de Filippis or the more known ones “Little Miss Sunshine” and “Call me by your Name”.

All examples to me from which I want to draw inspiration when it comes to the portrayal of love, relationships and appreciation for the other, learning from each other, but also a realistic idea of what we treat each other like, when we are our worst, most unfiltered self.

Workflow

1/ Collect scenarios that describe the feeling/ relationships I wish to portray and start writing small scenes (storyboard).

2/ Collect further references in films that give the feeling I want to give

3/ Define out characters and search for actors that are fitting (maybe if realistic people playing themselves?)

4/ Start shooting scenes

5/ The editing will most likely be a “writing by editing process”, in which I define the final narrative.

Timetable

Before September 2023: Writing first script/storyboard draft

September 2023 - December 2024: rounds of feedback, trial shoots, finalizing, organizing, finding team

January 2024 - June 2024: Film & edit

Altars/Shrines

1 What do you want to make?

A photobook or shortfilm on the idea of altars/shrines & how they are a spiritual practice, disconnected to one specific religion.

2 How do you plan to make it?

Start collecting stories of altars from those around me and start creating avery intentional altars also from self made ceramics.

Research rituals practiced around shrines/altars

3 Why do you want to make it?

I am very interested in artifacts and giving a layer of personal meaning to them and how that can give insights into someone's life as well as appreciation towards objects. This appreciation towards objects with associations is a possible sustainability strategy.

Also interesting to be in new ways of approaching spirituality and how psychedelics link to it.