Sarah Cameron Sunde, an interdisciplinary artist who works at the intersection of performance, video, and socially-engaged public art joins Asia on this episode of the podcast.
Asia and Sarah discuss Sarah's incredible project 36.5 / A Durational Performance with the Sea, a series of nine site-specific performances and video art works made in collaboration with communities around the world. In each performance, Sarah, joined by community members, stands silently in a body of water for a full tide cycle that lasts from 12 - 13 hours. Over this period of time, the water rises to almost engulf participants and later recedes back to low tide.
As the conversation begins, Sarah shares how she feels about the approach of the one-year anniversary of the final performance of 36.5, which took place in the New York Estuary on September 14, 2022 (2:10). Although the 36.5 series is complete, Sarah and Asia consider how 36.5 can continue to live on in other people's bodies (6:03).
Asia then asks Sarah to think back to the moment when Hurricane Sandy hit New York City in 2012 (8:58). In the wake of the deadly storm, Sarah realized how vulnerable the city was to sea-level rise and extreme weather, and she felt motivated to use art to communicate the struggle for survival amidst the climate crisis.
In the second-half of the episode, Sarah shares how she formed connections with people around the world to generate different iterations of 36.5 on almost every continent. Sarah also offers the example of how 36.5 was developed in Brazil with her collaborators (18:47).
Recognizing how important it will be to record and document all of the stories of 36.5, Sarah is working with Una Chaudhuri to write a book about the project (24:41). In closing, Sarah shares what gives her hope to continue her work (29:07) and provides a new way of framing what qualifies as a performance (30:53).
Follow Sarah Cameron Sunde and 36.5 on Instagram @scsunde and @36.5durational and online at https://www.sarahcameronsunde.com/
and https://www.36pt5.org/
This podcast is produced and edited by Asia Stewart.
Find Asia online @asiastewart and @performvu