Tired Water
Multimedia installation, 2023.
“Tired Water” is an installation comprised of an engraved metal vessel containing rice water, vibrated through a cymatic chant, spotlit and surrounded by apothecary instruments. Displayed on a lowered table with a stool, this vessel invites the viewer to reinterpret the relationship between human and nature through the process of cooking.
At a time of heightened climate anxiety, this piece is a tableau symbolic allegory to a shared sentiment of tiredness, but provides an alternative solution; one in which the relationship between person and nature is centered. ‘Beras kencur’, a form of jamu – the Indonesian traditional healing practice which Putri akins to cooking – contains the ingredients rice, lesser galangal and water. It is used to cure fatigue and rheumatic symptoms, which not only speaks to the collective fatigue of humanity, but also to the strained resources that our non-symbiotic societies have cultivated.
Commissioned for Vessel - ArtWalk Porty 2023, held at Art Hub, 189 Portobello High Street. Publication is now available.
As part of the 'Vessel' ArtWalk Porty 2023 Events Programme, Putri hosted two jamu-making workshops in the Art Walk Hub, 189 Portobello High Street, and Portobello Beach Promenade.
Participants made kunyit asem, a general tonic comprised of turmeric, tamarind, and palm sugar used to ease inflammation and increase overall immunity.
She invited participants to 'meet' the ingredients - through crushing, peeling, and grating outdoors.
Photo: Chris Counihan