Quiet Encounters.
Observing a Disappearing World, 2026
2-channel video installation
Channel 1: 00:12:00:00
Channel 2: 00:06:00:00, three synchronised monitors
With sound
Curatorial advisor: Ina Diallo
Set & research assistant: Jörg Lehnert
Shown and supported by KUNSTRAUM53, sponsored by Landschaftsverband Hildesheim e.V. , the city of Hildesheim, and Studierendenwerk Ost-Niedersachsen.
Every year in spring and autumn, millions of migratory birds cross oceans and continents to reach their wintering quarters or breeding sites. Often, they have to migrate thousands of kilometres in one go before they arrive at a place where they can rest and feed. One of the most important resting areas for many birds crossing Europe is the Wadden Sea of the North Sea. Without this unique landscape, which offers a rich food supply, the migration routes of many birds would be impossible. Yet the climate crisis and rising sea levels threaten this habitat, and with it the livelihood of millions of migratory birds. Like all landscapes, the Wadden Sea is not only home to birds, but an ecosystem shared by many species that live together and meet each other. Humans and birds share this habitat marked by crises, but we bear different responsibilities within it. When the birds arrive, people gather to observe them.
Quiet Encounters consists of two intertwined video works that do not only focus on the migratory birds, but also on the environment and the people who observe.
Next to the video works, a large photograph of a skua watches over the exhibition space and its visitors. The installation is designed as a space that encourages careful observation, with sound playing a significant role: birds chirp, water splashes, and planes fly over the sea. Through attentive seeing and listening, visitors can reflect on how we, as humans, share livelihoods with other critters and treat our surroundings — often from perspectives that do not account for our own interdependencies with the world. In this way, the installation becomes a stage for multispecies coexistence. How do we encounter each other when we listen carefully?
