Commissioned as part of the European-wide project The Weight of Air, funded by The Big Green and supported by the ONG Sciaena.
Taking its name from accompanying texts by poet Margaret Leppard, Breath of a Stone uses the unique landscapes of the Algarve to tell a story of elemental interconnections and sensorial conversations. The remains of trees burnt in wildfires form the shapes of the rocks, waters and plants of the coast; winds blasting across the red cliffs mingle with the breath of a wild keening spirit; a pink chimaera tastes the earth amongst the ancient remains of sea creatures and human bones. Elisabetta Antonucci’s film, and Ana Paxeco’s drawings and performances, describe our ecologically disturbed world through the metaphor of personal time (breath) and impersonal time (the wind). We are asked to let go of our political sense of climate change and instead feel our symbioses with the living and the non-living. This is a space to experience the large and small stories of reproduction, consumption, sexuality, communication and death that define our experience of the struggle for ecological harmony.
Making “Breath of a Stone”
In March 2024, based near the cliffs and beaches of Cavoiero, Elisabetta and Ana began exploring and documenting the landscape of the Algarve coast. Over the period they would create characters and a visual and performative language for the project. Poet Margaret Leppard used their experiences for a set of texts, helping to shape the themes of the piece. Portuguese-Angolan musician Carlos Gomes was commissioned to create original tracks and ambient sounds for the film and performance. These full texts and musical compositions will be available online during the exhibition, including an abridged Portuguese reading and translation by Catarina dos Santos.
“Breath of a Stone” | 2-Channel video with sound | 30 mins loop.
Film - Elisabetta Antonucci
Performance - Ana Paxeco
Editing and sound design - Margaret Leppard
Original music and sound - Carlos Gomes
Performance | 25 minutes.
Creation and performance - Ana Paxeco
Music - Carlos Gomes
Drawings by Ana Paxeco | Graphite, charcoal, acrylic and water-soluble charcoal on paper and canvas.
Breath of a Stone: Texts for The Weight of Air project by Elisabetta Antonucci & Ana Paxeco. Algarve, Portugal, 2024. written by Margaret Leppard.
Portuguese translations and readings by Catarina dos Santos.
With thanks to:
Massimiliano Ferraina | Vasco, Nicolas and all the Sciaena team | Bridie, Lunetta and the animals of Refúgio dos Burros of Lagoa | Beto Kalulu | Rui Pacheco | Favorito
Artist links
Elisabetta Antonucci
Ana Paxeco
Margaret Leppard
Catarina dos Santos
Carlos Gomes
All material is reproduced by kind permission of the credited artists and remains their intellectual property. For more information contact elisabetta.antonucci@gmail.com.