There is a river, in love with the Mediterranean sea,
finding its own path and flowing in reverse.
There is a sea, wounded, hoping to be rejuvenated by these reunion,
so that the land may heal.
There is a river, a rapturous river,
angry and unaware of what will happen to it on its way.
There is a river that meets the sun in green, blue and yellow.
There is a river, the earth has planted it here like a flag*.
It's been flowing for ages, seemingly limitless. Why are we so convinced of its limitlessness?
There is a river, a wedding, a joyful meeting.
There's a river free, like horses running en masse across a field.
There is a river, divided into three. A home with its basin,
a wheat field next to it. Healing for those who drink its water.
There is a river whose length is like a thousand songs,
a river on which dozens of songs have been written and sung.
There is a river in love with the Mediterranean. It flows to meet, breaks the stones.
There is a river, a sick being, corrupted on the way, changing color, nearly dying.
ASI RIVER AND THE NEW ALPHABET
2023-2024
Video 12’00’’, Series of 10 Drawings on Analogue Black and White Photographs, Ceramics, Organic Objects, Stone
Video: https://vimeo.com/video/1033466311
Password: AsiNehri
This project delves into the demographic, historical, political, and mythological significance of the Asi River and its basin landscape, which traverses three countries—Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey in the Levant region—flowing from South to North and eventually merging with the Mediterranean Sea.
By focusing on this water source through a hydro-feminist and ecological lens, this study aims to dissolve boundaries in order to perceive the landscape holistically, including its aquatic inhabitants. My objective was to explore the history of this landscape and its riparians—both human and non-human—by attempting to understand the memory carried by the water.
Through this research, I seek to highlight the monumentality of water: a natural monument that, along with all its inhabitants—fish, plants, microorganisms, and more—faces endangerment. This prompts a deeper inquiry into the memory of water and the traces embedded in the landscape through its flow. To explore this, I was inspired by communication with people in the Hermel region to employ speculative expressions that evoke a new alphabet, imagining that the river itself narrates the landscape and its inhabitants
*Etel Adnan, The Arab Apocalypse, The Post-Apollo Press, California, 2014
Last 3 images credit Marvin Systermanns