Miradonna Sirkka

At the Saari Residence, I will be working with western neocolonialism and an individual’s experience of futility, using the complexity of the hula hoop as an example. I’m working on a contemporary performance designed to make people stop and think before the moment of escapism sets in.

At first glance, the hula hoop seems like a naïve and cheerful toy, a piece of fitness equipment or a circus artist’s instrument. Hula hoops are plastic tubes whose history reveals the roots of western colonialism and how this history can still be seen, not only in performance art, but also in society as a whole. In my work, I make use of the feeling of awkwardness, social stress and relief; see my master’s thesis “Awkwardness as a Tool in My Artistic Practice.”

I expect the residence to provide an environment where I can concentrate and work in peace, at any time of the day and for however long I want. This allows me to immerse myself in my work, while new ideas bubble up and my brain is on fire. It’s amazing! I look forward to a life surrounded by nature and going for a walk or run in the forest. I love sharing this time with other artists, being alone together. I will work physically in the dance studio, as well as meditate and write. I will also write, shoot and edit videos. I use a lot of sounds and music in my work.

Miradonna Sirkka is a contemporary artist, contemporary circus and performance artist, director and performer. Her works are multidisciplinary mixtures of contemporary circus, performance, installation, video, sound and media art. Her inspiration arises from pleasure, raw human contact and everyday awkwardness. She has a degree as a circus artist from the Turku University of Applied Sciences, a Master of Arts degree from Aalto University and she has studied media art in Tokyo. Miradonna is the founder of Recover Laboratory (2014), a multi-art collective specialising in immersive performance experiences.

“My works are humorous, mundane and surreal, appearing deliberately naïve at first and gradually revealing a deeper meaning. It’s important to me to create a space people can get immersed in. A space that allows both the person experiencing the piece and its creator to be fully themselves, to set themselves free and, in this state of freedom, experience something that can be life-changing, or so prosaic it almost feels like nothing at all.”

miradonnasirkka.com