The Altersea Opera

Vast ocean beneath a misty sky. A creature of both water and land is praying to the sea goddess Ma-Zhou when he accidentally summons a dragon ship which takes him on a journey beyond time and space.

For the 60th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, the Nordic Countries Pavilion invites us to embark on a journey aboard a spectral dragon ship which occupies the light and open architecture of Sverre Fehn’s meditative masterpiece in the Giardini of the Biennale, Venice.

The 38 metre long bamboo structure, which extends beyond the confines of the Pavilion, is book-ended by a huge and ornate dragon’s head prow and tail, which has voyaged from its mooring on the frozen waters of the Stockholm Archipelago to the Venetian Lagoon.

Conceived and conceptualised by Swedish artist Lap-See Lam, and realised in collaboration with Norwegian composer Tze Yeung Ho, Finnish textile artist Kholod Hawash, The Altersea Opera is a poetic exploration of the existential implications of displacement and belonging which veers between the real and the imaginary.

At the centre of the installation, and brought to life by a film shot on board the Sea Palace, we find Lo Ting – half fish, half man – a figure from Hong Kong mythology reimagined across the passage of time through Lam’s script that tells the tale of his longing to return to a former home, Fragrant Harbour – only to find it transformed beyond recognition.

Poetry, lullabies, and pop songs

The haunting composition by Tze Yeung Ho, which combines extended playing techniques with baroque ornamentation, is performed with an eclectic array of instruments. The piece blends the libretto, written by Lap-See Lam (with contributions by Ivan Cheng as Future Lo Ting) with poetry, lullabies, and pop songs that draw on the artists’ diverse cultural histories.

Kholod Hawash‘s textile works form a sculptural installation in the Pavilion. Her embroideries conjure a distinctive world of motifs, sewn stitch-by-stitch through jodaleia and tatreez (Arabic for quilting and embroidery), with elements from folktales and archaeological landscapes.

La Biennale di Venezia 2024 takes place from Saturday 20 April to Sunday 24 November 2024.