filum

Inspired by the possibilities offered by rituals and repetitive acts of care, Filum is a first foray into public performance art.
The work uses thread and a work song/lullaby to deal with intergenerational and intertemporal relations and inheritances.

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Inspirée par les possibilités offertes par les rituels et la répétition des gestes de soins, Filum est une première performance devant public.
Cette œuvre utilise le fil et une chanson de travail/berçeuse pour traiter des liens et des héritages intergénérationnels et intertemporels.

Performance witnessing by Linda Rae Dornan

Annie France Noël created a performance of gentle actions which was visually stunning,  thematically ritualistic, and slightly unsettling. Dressed in a floor-length, deep royal blue dress, Noël sat in an old-style carved wood chair facing the audience. At her feet was a burlap bag of unprocessed wool. She slowly pulled blue woollen threads from a fold of her dress, all below the waist, one after the other, as if her veins, her tissue, her insides were being exposed. Threads in various blues tangled together. Simultaneously, the use of woollen thread inspired memories of women knitting, crocheting together, and teaching the younger family members skills. It was also evocative of family togetherness […], of creating blankets/clothing, birthing a child, or pulling out memories all wound up together in the never-ending cycle of life—the inheritances of culture and social behaviour we are all given. She sang a work song, a lullaby as she worked. Her calm and gentle movements revealed care...

This was Noël’s first foray into public performance art. The blue of her dress and the woollen threads refer to “the baby blues,” she says—a description of the post-birth experience of hormonal imbalance leading to sadness, depression and other mental issues. Blue is the colour of calm and also sorrow, Noël says, referencing the hospital gown, the medical pads, the glow of the baby monitor. At the end of the performance, there was a large tangle of knotted threads, impossible to unravel, which she held up to regard. The many post-birth experiences of learning to care for herself and her little one?  Her patience and focus throughout this performance leave us to believe that caring is primary for her, despite any struggles. 

Documentation photo: Jacques Cormier
Galerie Sans Nom
March 16, 2025

Présenté dans le cadre de la Tournée biennale d’art performance PERFform 25
PERFform est produit par la Galerie Sans Nom et soutenu par le Programme de la Tournée et Diffusion du Ministère de la Tourisme, Patrimoine et Culture