We use visual storytelling to create a container for sharing our personal and collective losses. A place to share our grief and hope in the context of moving with the earth and each other.
“Grief” is a contemporary dance performance choreographed by Mariah Palmer and Sara Mannheimer. The piece evolved from a desire to process a sense of loss of interconnectedness with the land resulting from living within an ever more extractive and commodified society. The piece uses movement to process our grief over this loss, and to resensitize ourselves to the feelings and rhythms of the natural world.
Abstract
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Produced by: Local Earth and Nathan Norby
Edited by: Nathan Norby and Jordan Lawrence
Choreographed by: Sara Mannheimer and Mariah Palmer
Costumes naturally dyed and handmade by Sara and Mariah
Dancers: Anna Allen, Sara Mannheimer, Dorothy Burns, Ellie Oakley, Mariah Palmer, Dana Terzi
Music by: Las Migas
Filmed on the traditional land of Shoshone-Bannock and Eastern Shoshone peoples
The Film
Workshops
Our workshops are designed to help us lean into the intersection between art, the natural world, and the emotional work needed to produce collective change.
Mystical Stitching
with Christi Johnson
A sweet 3 part series exploring our physical and spiritual connection to nature through slow stitching.
“You’re invited to embrace everything from beauty to sadness, express through fibers the grace found in accepting what is, and explore future possibilities of personal transformation.” - Christi
Landscapes & Natural Dyes
with Mariah Palmer
Curious about the secrets that plants have to offer? Discover living color in your own area as Mariah takes you outside to explore the color potential found in nature. This is an online course that you can do on your own time at your own pace. Learn about ethical wild foraging and processing plants to dye on fabric.
Activism
The Local Earth Collective has created a unique naturally-dyed patchwork quilt with colors collected from many different landscapes and embroidered with many hands. Many of us have spent the past several years isolated, siloed with the weight of the world's grief as well as personal losses. This quilt is an opportunity to invite healing. We believe that these individual quilt squares can carry the healing that comes from joining with others for a purpose, the healing that comes from intentional and slow handwork, and the healing that comes from creating beauty out of the ordinary natural materials in our lives.
A portion of the proceeds will be donated to the international Indigenous-led NGO Cultural Survival. Established in 1972, Cultural Survival advocates for Indigenous People’s rights and supports Indigenous communities’ self-determination, cultures, and resilience. Natural dyeing has gained in popularity recently, but this craft has been informed by the artistic knowledge developed and retained in Indigenous communities. We chose to donate proceeds to Cultural Survival in gratitude for this retained cultural knowledge and in acknowledgment of the grief borne by many of these communities. Furthermore, Indigenous peoples worldwide maintain some of the most biodiverse lands with tremendous courage and skill in the face of global environmental losses. Many people today feel disconnected from their natural environment, and we view this as related to loss of long-term knowledge and stewardship of place. Indigenous communities are key in helping to preserve and repair that relationship.