I Saw Myself- A Poetry Film

The term Liminality comes from the Latin word limens, meaning “threshold." It refers to a state of transformation, in-betweenness, and blurriness. Liminality is linked with birth and death, regression and growth, a state of things where the regular norms and regulations are no longer valid, and there is yet to be a new order that one can obey and follow. The liminal space offers us a glimpse into the chaos that underlies what appear to be neatly organized social realities. There is both fragility and power in those states where the change is taking place. Private and public rites of passage help individuals and societies to transcend these moments of transition and change. This video work was shot during the first COVID-19 lockdown in Lisbon, when I spent almost one month in a big apartment by myself. It was presented as part of an experimental research project at the Hangar Centre for Artistic Investigation in 2020. The poetry film represents the general feeling of disquiet, fear, and anticipation that took place both outside and inside; the blurring of the lines separating between light and dark, sacred and profane, chaos and creation. It is based on the poem I saw myself as them by the poet Ofir Masharki, in which the speaker observes herself as one of the founding mothers of Hebrew poetry. Unlike masculine Hebrew poetry, these women wrote about their private experiences, reflecting their mental and spiritual inner worlds. The lonely women of Hebrew poetry struggled to belong in a cultural space that was not designed to include them. The poem creates a link between then and now, addressing the connection between femininity, creation, and sacrifice; what do women still need to sacrifice to belong in contemporary patriarchal cultures? The figure in the video tries to relocate herself in the world and find a sense of belonging by reflecting and erasing her image amidst her surroundings.