Reorientations : steps towards more eco-socially sustainable new media art and lighting design in contemporary performance

Abstract

The Reorientations publication is aimed at lighting designers and new media artists working in the international field. Ecologically sustainable performance and production practices are often understood at a general level as being about material recycling. However, in the artistic examples presented in the Reorientations essay collection, and in the essays reflecting on them, I have sought to impose stricter boundaries on myself. What if I refused to use lighting fixtures whose material origins the manufacturers could not trace? What if I avoided using electricity on stage altogether? What if I abandoned travel completely? The examples in the essays explore productions realised in theatre and museum spaces, as I believe that, to achieve rapid change, it is effective to experiment with new approaches in contexts brimming with conventions.

In the first section of the Reorientations essays, I challenge common traditions in lighting design. I use only a single light fixture that fits into a backpack to design the lighting for a performance, observing how this choice influences the artistic process and touring practices. Additionally, I examine the origins of the materials used in an LED light – does the manufacturer genuinely know the sources of the mined materials used in the light's production, or am I, through the minerals in the light, connected to exploitation? In the second essay, I address lighting design for performances and the creation of public artworks using alternative light sources. I also explore the potential of dimness, sharing authorship with weather conditions and planetary movements. In the third essay, I disconnect entirely from the electrical grid, lighting a candle as a tribute to the memory of fossil capitalism. The fourth section focuses on international collaboration. Travel generates an enormous amount of carbon dioxide emissions. Could we completely abandon travel and still work internationally by utilising Extended Reality (XR) technologies? Are future metaverses the answer to ecologically and socially sustainable international collaboration in exhibitions and performances? The fifth essay explores the possibilities of dramaturgical work in multidisciplinary collaboration in the context of the ecological crisis. In the final section, I return to childhood landscapes, reflecting on the potential of powerful emotional experiences to revitalise our relationship with the environment through the creation of a community-based video artwork. In conclusion, I summarise the "new landscape" that has emerged through the Reorientations project. In the Reorientations essays, my aim has not been to create a moral guide but to share reflections that invite the reader to engage their own critical thinking. The materials and ideas from the artistic examples are freely available for all creators to use. I hope these essays, along with the artistic examples, will plant seeds and encourage lighting designers and media artists to further develop these ideas in their own work. The Reorientations publication is based on Jani-Matti Salo's Finnish essays, which were published as part of the "Uudelleen suuntauksia: Askeleita kohti ekososiaalisesti kestävämpää mediataidetta ja nykyesitysten valosuunnittelua" project publication, supported by the Kone Foundation between 2021 and 2023.