Ask the cards a burning question and share, listen, reflect and move together.
Fortunes of the Forest is a set of divination cards created by Caitlin Franzmann during an artist residency in Karawatha Forest, Brisbane. 40 divination cards each depict an image of a plant, rock or insect found in Karawatha Forest, photographed by Man Cheung. I joined Caitlin in 2018 to bring dance and performance into the act of reading together. Together we faciliatate this unique experience, featuring a collective card reading, conversational reflection and gentle guided movement session, inviting us all to slow down and build our awareness of nature in the everyday by engaging with, and listening to, plant wisdom.
This work has been performed QAGOMA, 2022 (Embodied Knowledge); Karawatha Forest 2022; New Museum (online) 2021; Dancehouse 2019; Carlton Library 2019; Carlton Square 2019
All photos by Keelan O’Hehir.
In 2018, Fortunes of The Forest evolved as a collaboration, performed as a part of a Dancehouse Program, We Make Each Other Up. For this event, Fortunes of the Forest became a one-to-one-to-one encounter between these two artists and an individual, in an urban park in Carlton, Melbourne. Selecting a card from the deck, visitors received a divination reading as well as a gift of a small dance triggered by the card they chose. It is a participatory performance event that encourages slowness, plant knowledge, social interaction, dancing, listening, observing and reflecting. Fortunes of the Forest celebrates the natural beings of Karawatha Forest, with whom we share primeval genes. With added choreography and performance, the project produces something magical, moving and medicinal that is intimate, relaxed, in-depth and unique to each visitor.