Anne-Katrin Spiess /
Urban Purification Ritual
This performance is a purification ritual of 14th Street, a procession traversing East to West and then West to East continuously from sunrise to sunset. During this peripatetic activity, Spiess will burn sage to purify the doorway of each building and any individual who wishes to be smudged along the entire length of 14th street. A collaborator will drum, another will will carry a bowl filled with water from the East river to bless 14th street by sprinkling drops of water, eventually refilling it from the Hudson River for the return journey.
October 1 from sunrise to sunset
Begins at the East River and ends at the Hudson River.
artist info
Spiess's work can be described as Conceptual Land Art. She creates site-specific projects in wide-open, remote landscapes, where severance from civilization creates distance from the “real world.†Performance and ritual have played an essential role in Spiess's work. Recent projects focus on addressing environmental concerns, to increase individuals’ awareness.
