Sal-Puri dance (2020)

Since I made the book ‘My Anger and Peace’, I could look into my mind clearly. The emotion usually stayed unconsciously stayed inside of my mind, without a clear shape. The book materialized my anger and gave it a shape. It followed me everywhere and sometimes it tried to swallow me up. I should get over it. I can’t let that old emotion controls my mind. I was thinking about a Korean traditional dance called ‘Salpuri’ dance. The ‘Salpuri’ dance origins from shamanism and is usually performed by professional dancers. It is considered a fine art in Korea. ‘Sal’ is defined as a curse, evil spell, or negative energy. The ‘Salpuri’ dance banishes the Sal. It sublimates negative energy with Salpuri music and shows emotions with movement. The dance becomes the way to purify my feelings and allows me to step outside of the storm of emotions. I decided to make the Korean traditional, that is used in the dance, myself. From the moment I started making my dress, it already gave me a certain release about my anger. With every step in the making process, bit by bit my emotions released into the dress. I was really happy because I felt like I found the right material but also in same time I feel worried about making clothes and dancing. I am using an element of Korean culture and translating it into a work that is mine, and I was worried that I might ruin the historical dance. But as soon as I started to make the dress, I feel like the anger that tangled up has been torn apart. I slowly finished the dress and I printed my plants, which provide the dress with the peace I wanted. I then went to the park early in the morning and danced surrounded by nature. I never learned the dance so it was a somewhat strange and clumsy experience but I focused on the meaning of this dance and on myself. I wish people who see it will be able to connect with my motives for this dance and the symbolism it embodies.