Soundwalk 
Walking piece details
| Duration | 10 minutes |
In-between distance
CC-BY-NC: Sophie Cabot
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An audiopaper recorded in Crete, Greece and Quebec, Canada.
Sophie Cabot lives in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and Vicky Vergou was born in Greece and lived in the UK for over 20 years. They are both women, artists, thinkers, all-seasons walkers having both a deep interest in intelligence of nature. Their first languages are French and Greek accordingly.
Sophie and Vicky initially met in December 2020 at an online forum led by OIKA, an art and ecology organisation. Having both expressed a need for collaboration they started to meet regularly online, setting up a joined presentation on walking artists, followed by an online distant walking event in March 2021. The isolation and alienation caused by the pandemic led them to continue regularly a dialogue and geographically synchronised walking. This unexpected encounter had led to a strong connection between the two artists.
In summer 2021 and winter 2022 two meditative walks took place at the same time in a 7.800 km distance. Both walks took place next to waterbodies, such as sea and river, with a purpose both artists to merge with the environment and connect with each other, practicing some of the OIKA concepts such as narrative, fractals, continuity and playfulness. They discovered affinities, concerns and common intentions. They shared skills and joined creativity while speaking both in a second language.
In between distance is a sound piece created above water and land through invisible threads. It includes narratives of meditative processes which took place in two parallel worlds in the north and the south, with an intention to be with the other person. It refers to stories of how the two people imagine each other even if they have never met and their exciting distant form of communication. Once you know you are sharing there is no distance of any kind, “you are not alone”.
Wonderful collaboration!