We Are Many Things: Investigating a sense of shared space and questions of mixed identities in Indaba by Ayla Brinkmann

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.

5 CONCLUSION

In this written work, I set out to research the question: What kind of tools and skills are helpful in creating a sense of shared space in a performative setting? The main research findings are a tool for establishing a way of sharing space and the importance of the performer’s sensitivity and responsibility in making meanings.

This research process has strengthened my initial intuition that questions of shared space and mixed identities are important dimensions of social situations - and underrepresented research topics in the Finnish context.

Shared space can also be a very literal question of where the people are situated in the space. One possible future direction could be to research how differently shaped spaces and stage setups influence the social dynamics in the performance and our subsequent experience of shared space.

In a way we’re always in a potential third space. There’s always potential for an indaba. There’s always potential for shared space. The question is not whether a particular space is a shared space, but rather: how are you existing in the space? Are you welcome there and are you existing in a welcoming way? Are you open to exchanging and mixing with others and their ideas?

These are questions that are best faced together.

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Ayla Brinkmann - We Are Many Things: Investigating a sense of shared space and questions of mixed identities in Indaba - 2025