Exposition

We Are Many Things: Investigating a sense of shared space and questions of mixed identities in Indaba (last edited: 2025)

Ayla Brinkmann
open exposition

About this exposition

This artistic research project deals with Indaba, a performance for young audiences. Indaba is an isiZulu word for a meeting or discussion where the right people meet at the right moment to figure out things that concern them. Our performance Indaba explores questions like: How does it feel to be Finnish, or African, or both? How do many identities fit into one person? This artistic research and performance investigate important and underrepresented topics in the Finnish context: a sense of shared space and questions of mixed identities. The research question addresses shared space as follows: “What kind of tools and skills are helpful in creating a sense of shared space in a performative setting?”. The research takes a closer look at a series of five alternating and interconnected indabas and reflection sessions with the performer-trio: Pietari Kauppinen, Kasheshi Makena, and the author of this exposition. This written work also maps out some key conversations and concepts that our indaba and this artistic research connect to, such as third space and intersectionality. The main research findings are a practical tool for establishing a way of sharing space and the importance of the performer's responsibility in making meanings. Relevant skills that emerged from these findings include observation skills such as being alert and sensing what meanings things carry in the context at hand, and proactive skills such as the ability to respond in the moment.
typeresearch exposition
keywordsartistic research, borderlands, dance, indaba, intersectionality, mixed identities, music, performance, shared space, third culture kid, third space, young audiences
date31/07/2025
last modified18/09/2025
statusin progress
share statuspublic
copyrightAyla Brinkmann
licenseCC BY-NC-ND
languageEnglish
urlhttps://www.researchcatalogue.net/view/3235169/3235170


Copyrights

nameINDABA promo pic_square
copyrightAyla Brinkmann
licenseAll rights reserved
usagespicture
nameScreenshot 2025-07-02 at 16.21.21
copyrightAyla Brinkmann
licenseAll rights reserved
usagespicture
nameScreenshot 2025-07-02 at 16.19.47
copyrightAyla Brinkmann
licenseAll rights reserved
usagespicture
nameSOUND RECORDING 1 - REFLECTION NO. 4 - 1.3.2025
copyrightAyla Brinkmann, Kasheshi Makena & Pietari Kauppinen
licenseAll rights reserved
usagesaudio
nameINDABA_video excerpt 1
copyrightAapo Niininen
licenseAll rights reserved
usagesvideo
nameVideo excerpt 1_preview
copyrightAapo Niininen
licenseAll rights reserved
usagesimage
nameINDABA_video excerpt 2
copyrightAapo Niininen
licenseAll rights reserved
usagesvideo
nameVideo excerpt 2_preview
copyrightAapo Niininen
licenseAll rights reserved
usagesimage

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