Help me tell my cancer story in DIRT:BODY

Since a human body is a work in progress, the title DIRT/BODY has been changed to MATER/Bodies in Question.

It is a multi-media gallery installation and performance experience that invites viewers into the unfolding of women’s stories of surviving breast cancer and reconnecting with their femininity that goes deeper than flesh. Artists from Ukraine, Greece, India, Serbia, Italy, Japan, and the US have come together to create this unique site-specific event.

Conceived and produced by RISE COLLECTIVE and PALLAS gallery.

The event is free for cancer survivors and patients, and their families.

Running for one weekend during daytime hours, viewers can sign up for a time slot every 15 minutes to experience “Normal Day,” an interactive VR documentary for one. Actress Tatyana Kot reflects upon her experience with breast cancer through dance, poetry, and performance art. The work presented on Oculus Rift follows both Tatyana’s daily routine as she deals with her diagnosis and her inner emotional work as she strives to maintain a sense of normalcy. Towards the end of the experience, after the viewer has been immersed in the intimate world of Tatyana’s story, Tatyana asks the viewer to hold her hand so they can follow her further.

There will be one evening performance that weave together the stories of women on parallel journeys toward healing and the rediscovery of sacred femininity. The artists take the audience through the physical space via movement art, literature, mythos, film, music, photography, and soundscape. We use a music device called Plantwave that takes electrical variations in a plant via two electrodes, graphs them, and then translates them into pitch messages that play musical instruments. This earth song creates a common connection between the artists and the viewers, reminding us that we are all one and that all action has a cause and effect upon the health of the planet and that of the human body. Earth and human human body are made of one MATER.

Our project needs help with the following:

travel expenses $500

food $200

costume and footwear $200

programs and posters $500

space rental $200

transportation $100

performers' stipend $600

art materials $200

Any size donation will bring our project closer to its premiere in San Fransisco on 11/19/22 and 11/20/22!