BURNT NORTON

In this project, I tried to visualize a poem that was dear to me for a long time-Burnt Norton by T.S Elliot. It was part of the final assignment of my first year at the Willem de Koning Academy. It's a beautiful, abstract, and quite surreal poem touching on subjects like time, memories, and decisions. I strived to offer it the same visual response by combining a set of videos from my own archive. As for displaying it, I chose to project the video inside a large box where it can be looked at through a hole. For a better experience, I offered a pair of noise-canceling headphones for the viewer. Combining all these visual-auditory elements, I want to offer my audience a secluded moment between themselves and this poem.

Time present and time past
Are both perhaps present in time future,
And time future contained in time past.
If all time is eternally present
All time is unredeemable.
What might have been is an abstraction
Remaining a perpetual possibility
Only in a world of speculation.
What might have been and what has been
Point to one end, which is always present.
Footfalls echo in the memory
Down the passage which we did not take
Towards the door we never opened

Into the rose-garden.  

And Still I Rise

In my project And Still I Rise, I focus on an anonymous girl from Brazil who escaped the abusive household she grew up in. Now living in a shelter in Rotterdam, I spent several months getting to know her and documenting her journey. The images, taken both inside her studio at the shelter and outside, reflect her inner struggles, battles, and hope of leaving her past behind to start a new life.

Coming from a challenging environment myself, I deeply relate to her story, which makes this project incredibly personal to me. The trust she placed in me to share her story is something I will cherish forever.

I am profoundly inspired by O.’s courage and resilience as she navigates this unfamiliar new world. She has learned Dutch remarkably quickly, found work in Rotterdam, and is now applying to pursue higher education.

In this project—and in future work addressing domestic violence—I aim to honor the bravery of women who have dared to break free or confront abusive situations, even when it felt like the hardest choice they could make. I hope that stories like these will inspire other women to see that there is a path beyond abuse, and that it is possible to create a new, fulfilling life.

The Exhibition

This project was created as part of my participation in the long-term workshop New Voices 2, organized by RFG Magazine, an online publication dedicated to sharing the stories of newcomers. It was exhibited for about a month at the Municipality of The Hague in the Netherlands.

Press

THE PROOF PROJECT

In this project, I am visualizing the process I had to follow in order to live in the Netherlands with my ex-partner. As a Moldavian citizen, I was not allowed to be in the European Union for longer than 3 months. The Dutch government provides a set of exceptions in regard to this rule and together with my ex-boyfriend, I decided to get a Residence Permit for Partner. In order to obtain it, both of us had to comply with a set of requirements and rules. Additionally, there was a need to provide numerous proofs in order to demonstrate that our relationship was legit. With this paperwork, I am emphasizing the ridicule of this process and how much power the government can exert over an intimate relationship.

The exhibition that I presented in front of my class and tutors at Willem de Kooning Academy consisted of three parts: the paperwork displayed on a thread is the only thing to be seen at first. Then I start to take down one by one and destroy them through a shredding paper machine. As I do this, a beamer starts to project a compilation of text messages and letters I exchanged with my ex-partner.

With all these layers of my project, I want to communicate the contrast between the 'perfect couple' image that was shown to the Dutch government and the reality of a long-distance relationship.

The performance: