Latai Taumoepeau

Deep Communion sung in minor (ArchipelaGO, THIS IS NOT A DRILL)

Deep Communion sung in minor (ArchipelaGO, THIS IS NOT A DRILL), a 16-channel immersive sound installation, invites the public to take part in an extended performance - raising awareness of the dangers of deep-water mining in the Pacific.

Through the construction of a platform made up of sounds and stationary oarsmen, the work evokes rituals of mass collective worship and superimposes geopolitical issues onto cultural complexities linked to spiritual beliefs and ritual practices, through faiva (body-centered) performances.

This immersive installation is Taumoepeau's interpretation of an ancient choral ritual, the Me'etu'upaki: (me'e) means dance, (tu'u) standing, (paki) with paddles. By collectively committing to powering the stationary oarsmen, the audience amplifies the scope of their people's ceremonial Me'etu'upaki - a collective effort that participates in the resistance against deep-sea mining. At the heart of this work lies an ancestral cultural obligation: to keep alive the cosmogony of the artist's Tongan ancestors through vā (space/time), where Kele (marine sediment) and Limu (seaweed) remain intact. Taumoepeau then poses the question: who is prepared to carry out this work in an exercise of ecological responsibility?

The installation can be activated by visitors when the Opale Foundation is open.

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Latai Taumoepeau

Born 1972
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Latai Taumoepeau is a contemporary artist of Tongan and Australian origin. Recognized as a Punake - the Tongan term for an artist who composes poetry, song and choreography - she builds her art around faivā, a performative practice centered on the body.

Deep Communion sung in minor (ArchipelaGO, THIS IS NOT A DRILL), a 16-channel immersive sound installation, invites the public to take part in an extended performance - raising awareness of the dangers of deep-water mining in the Pacific.

Through the construction of a platform made up of sounds and stationary oarsmen, the work evokes rituals of mass collective worship and superimposes geopolitical issues onto cultural complexities linked to spiritual beliefs and ritual practices, through faiva (body-centered) performances.