Salt&Pepper&Mop in a prossesion

performance and installation

November, 2008

A procession, "Ontferm U "

in Museum night

conceived by Elena Beelaerts, Floris Tilanus

organized by W139

Amsterdam, the Netherlands

Salt&Pepper

Mop

photographed by Jeroen Timmer  

A procession has a beginning and an end in its line. It needs some certain elements to make 'fade in' and 'fade out'. At the head of advancing line, I would like to clear the way with wishes for a success of the procession and our life in the city. It is a performance playing with an ceremonial manner, purifying the street with salt and pepper. Salt and pepper are dairy necessity on our table, often taken for a ceremonial situation. Pepper has been a main spice and a reason why the city, Amsterdam was grown as an international port in the past. 2 performers are working and throwing salt with a repeated gestures based on sign language to tell, ' death', 'big family', 'small family', 'gezellig', 'chatting', 'life'' and throwing salt. 4 performers grind pepper with pepper mile with orderly resume. At the end of procession, I would like to clean the street with an 11-metre-long mop that is rinsed out in the canal. This idea aims to clean up all kinds of dirtiness of the city, and same time, to carry them all to the goal, an exhibition space, W139. This quite heavy mop, carried by 10 people, could be seen as a representation of the Cross without religious context.