Sara Wollasch: Lament

PLACE: Aura river, moving performance. The performance can be seen from Vähätori at 15:45 and from Varvintori at 16:10. 

DATE & TIME: Sun 7.9. at 16–18

DURATION: 2 h. No pre-booking needed.

LANGUAGE: None

Information about accecibility here 

Lament is a haunting performance exploring the intersection of mythology, societal decline, and nature’s silent resistance. Drawing from Finnish and Czech folklore, the artist embodies Näkki—a water spirit/mermaid both seductive and ominous—who emerges to reveal the fragility of human existence.

Through slow, intimate gestures, Wollasch invites the audience to participate in the gradual unveiling of her form, as layers of conventional clothing are cut away to expose a flesh-colored, sculptural costume beneath. Water, glitter, and tactile sensations evoke themes of transformation, desire, and decay.

The performance merges cultures, creating an analogy between existence and the humanoid form, a being living on the threshold of past, present, and future. It delves into ecological grief, corporeality, and the mythic forces that shape us. Näkki’s Lament urges the audience to confront their relationship with nature, history, forgotten legends and their perception of the body.

Sara Wollasch (she/her) is a Czech artist and curator exploring corporeality, care, and new forms of coexistence. Her work blends performance, sculpture, and installation, using nudity and body stylization as tools of expression. Themes of love and existential irony are central to her approach, as seen in performances like Prsa (2021) and Stefania (2024). Since 2023, she has been a curator at Umakart Gallery, focusing on body imagination, historical analogies, and humor. In 2016, she co-founded the artistic duo NEWkus with Bára Smékalová (Schreier), experimenting with body-focused performances and trash aesthetics. Wollasch studied at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Brno and has exhibited in galleries and performed at festivals. She loves working with people, often engaging audiences directly in her performances and projects.