chatty, messy, sticky, tsss...

A diary from Habitat (Tredozio, IT), August 2022

By Chaeyoung Kim and Nami Kim

Hello, we are two artists, Nami and Chaeyoung. chatty, messy, sticky, ___ is a series of a performative publishing project, attempting to embrace diverse formats of collective workshop. chatty, messy, sticky, tsss... is the first experiment that took place in Habitat, a co-living/co-working space in Tredozio (IT) on August 2022. This book is a framgmental documentation of the workshop.

"Yesterday I published something. Ah wait, not 'I', I mean 'we'. I was with 11 other people and we made our own little book then bound everything together. Pfff... it was not easy to bind all the different pieces into one, because everyone made various contents with different intentions. We were so chatty thus it was chaotic. But we persistently and stubbornly stayed together. In the end, what we created was a heavy-fat-ugly-cute book thingy."

"3, 2, 1, Yayyyy! We cheered and celebrated our collaborative Buchimgae (Korean pancake) cooking. Sharing one Buchimage altogether, we tore it into pieces. It was GOOD. The pancake batter was a glue, as it hugged all the ingredients. Looking back, cooking was also a glue, because we became closer in the end. Tssss... the sizzle, the chatty and the festive sounds still lingers in my ears..."

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Rotterdam to Eindhoven, Eindhoven to Bologna, Bologna to Faenza, Faenza to Tredozio...
Our journey from the Netherlands to Italy was made through winding roads. When we landed to Habitat, the sky was colored into orange.

Our friend Jacopo (a.k.a Pongie) and a kitten Bilbi, a mascot of Habitat, welcomed us with open arms.

Ah yea, a group of wasps as well!

Our first workshop chatty, messy, sticky, tsss... was planned to happen two days later. What we wanted to do with artists in Habitat is creating a temporary platform to make collective publications into two different formats;

1) a format of a book through relay binding
2) a format of a dish: Buchimgae, Korean pancake.

The collective book binding (step-by-step):

a-1) introduce what we're going to do; part one relay book binding (10-15m):
Start from our title and unpack the (background) story of the workshop idea. Let participants know that the workshop will recorded as soundscape and ask if they're okay with it.

a-2) Play around with tools: (15m)
Before get into the binding session, participants have 15 minutes to play around with the prepared tools. They can touch and use a few of them and will have the sense of materiality. Participants sit around a table and each of them has a specific role. (e.g. Person A cuts papers, person B punches holes, person C tapes, person D folds, etc). Through the relayed tasks, they will make collaborative publication(s). During the session, they will share their thoughts and discuss the collective values in the action of binding.

a-3) Select a tool for each person and explain why they chose it. (10m)
Give them a few minutes to select a tool/a role they want, and have a short round to listen to the reasons. Have a brief overview for the outcome and share thoughts.

a-4) A brief discussion for the arrangement of seat positions (10-20m) : Let them think about orders/mechanisms they want to have

a-5)The relay binding moment! (45m) While waiting for one's turn, there will be continuous daily conversation.

a-6) Wrap up (10m):
A round of feeling and touching the outcome. Then have a 3 minutes of cool-down moment to think how they want to name/define the outcome. Then let them write it down on sticky notes/paper (prepared by the hosts) and put them on the outcome (pub). [BREAK] The 1st session done! 30mins tea-time / prepare the next workshop; Buchimgae making

It's the D-day! The 28th Aug 2022, 5PM
Participants were very respectfully listening to our introduction.

Tssssss...... Taping sounds!
People were busy with making their own page!

Yea...We remeber... The rustle of papers being cut, torn out, sticked....

When it seemed that people almost finishsed making their pages, we wanted to start the relay binding.

Starting from a page, it was becoming a book. Getting thicker and thicker...

Tada!!! Completed!
We asked for the participants to label how they want to name/call it.

Tada!!! Completed!
We asked for the participants to label how they want to name/call it.

Cooking Buchimgae together (step-by-step):

b-1) Ask ppl to explain what ingredients they brought (if they haven't brought any, then grab whatever in the fridge and ask them why they chose it)
b-2) Introduce what we're going to do; what is Buchimgae,
In Korea, we count the number of Buchimgae as if we count paper. We call it like Buchimgae 1 jang (=page), 2 jang...
b-3) Split into a few groups. Each group makes their own Buchimgae, mixing various ingredients.
b-4) When mixing the ingredients, use batter that the hosts prepared. They will be mingled together.
b-4) Have a special ceremony to eat Buchimgae, which is tearing it all together :) (Normally a page of Buchimgae is supposed to be had together.
b-5) Just enjoying it!

Buchimage is Korean pancake., mixing (= gluing = binding) various ingredients.

Before the cooking session, we introduced what Buchimgae is. We let them know why the pancake can be an experimental format of a publication.

We explained that in Korea, the number of Buchimgae is counted as a page of a book. Like Buchimgae 1,2,3 jang (=page)...

Floor, one of the participants, were cutting a tomato! That was juicy.

Floor and Pongie were discussing composition of their pancake... What a passion!

Another group created a concept of their pancake as a scenery of Tredozio. The orange sky and green fields...

Their pancake was elegant. It was just like a plate served from a high-end fine dining restaurant.

Haha, Lino and Illo's pancake had the face of Bilbi! Would Bilbi know this?

Another pancake with their names written! It was quite a statement :)

After every group finished cooking, we gathered into a dining room. Pongie addressed the meaning of the dinner.

3, 2, 1, Yayyyyy!!!! We tored a pancake together!