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Prompt 5: Scattered
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Continue reading →: Prompt 5: ScatteredThe term scattered generally refers to objects, thoughts, or people dispersed unevenly across an area. For example: leaves scattered on a forest floor, or a scattered mental state characterized by unfocused thoughts. In the context of displacement, scattered also captures the dispersed and fragmented nature of movement and settlement. Climate…
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Prompt 4: Unsettled
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Continue reading →: Prompt 4: UnsettledMy last response concluded with the realization of how challenging it is to hold someone else’s pain. This week’s response begins with the equally difficult task of sitting with my own discomfort. As I was unsettled by this week’s artifact, my response is less structured, less researched. It is more…
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Prompt 3: Scorched
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Continue reading →: Prompt 3: ScorchedThe word scorched has rich, layered meanings. Literally, it describes something burned or singed by intense heat, often leaving marks or damage. Metaphorically, scorched can signify emotional pain or trauma, leaving an imprint as deep as any physical burn. It can also evoke experiences of harsh environments or adversity that…
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Prompt 2: Without Warning
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Continue reading →: Prompt 2: Without WarningThe second prompt, “Without Warning,” represents the sudden event that threatens the connection expressed in the first prompt, “Bound to Earth.” It embodies the unexpected disruptions that can sever one’s attachment to land, community, or stability. This prompt shifts the narrative from grounding to upheaval. To recall, we are representing…
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Prompt 1: Bound to Earth
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Continue reading →: Prompt 1: Bound to Earth“Bound to Earth” is the first stop marking the beginning of this journey, a dual journey. On one hand, it represents the journey of collaboration between Devora and me in this project. On the other, it’s the imagined journey we structured with the order of prompts, tracing the path of…
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What are we talking about, and what does is all mean?
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Continue reading →: What are we talking about, and what does is all mean?My first post in this project led me to a question emerging from Devora’s performance practice: “What does is all mean?” It was about a reflection before the action. In legal texts, definitions often come first. Many legal documents begin with a section dedicated to definitions, ensuring there’s no confusion,…
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Devora Neumark: Living in Contemplative Performance
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Continue reading →: Devora Neumark: Living in Contemplative PerformanceI met Devora on a cold sidewalk in front of the “Citizen and Immigration Canada” building. Nervousness was palpable in the long line up of status seekers checking in with their assigned officers. Rumor had it that you could go in and not come out through the same door –…
About
This ongoing project is a collaboration between Karina Kesserwan and Devora Neumark, developed as part of Devora’s Forced Migration and Refugee Studies: Networking and Knowledge Transfer fellowship at the Centre for Human Rights in Erlangen-Nürnberg.
The project centers around 13 prompts, adapted from AI-generated outputs, each designed to inspire reflection and performance-based responses to the lived experiences of displacement.
Each week, Devora responds to one of these prompts with a performance gesture, creating an artifact such as a photo, audio recording, or drawing. A week later, Karina responds to the artifact with a reflective commentary, fostering a thoughtful dialogue that adds depth to the initial performance.
The thematic arc of the prompts begins with attachment to place and concludes with the metaphor of wind, symbolizing memory, scattering, and the passage of time.
The series starts with “Bound to earth,” which reflects a sense of grounding, and moves through prompts like “Scorched,” evoking the urgency of departure, and “Wrapped in loss,” capturing the emotional weight of leaving behind people and cultural elements. It culminates in “The wind remembers,” a meditation on the lingering memories and stories of displacement.
This progression mirrors the emotional journey of those displaced due to climate crises—beginning with stability, passing through loss and adaptation, and ending with resilience.
Through these weekly reflections, the project delves into not just the physical aspects of displacement, but also the profound cultural and emotional impacts, creating a contemplative performance series that invites deeper engagement with these themes.
Displacement Codes - Contemplative Performance and the Climate Crisis 