Tino Seghal: Tate Modern, Turbine Hall
I stumbled across this without knowing anything about it. Crossing the Turbine Hall on my way to The Tanks, I sensed a wave of motion, a swarming around me, as a group of about 60 people walked purposefully towards the back of the hall – and then back again. They seemed to be actors of some kind; graceful movement- with a confident sense of body. They picked-up pace and it I think the crowd were joining in. But it was difficult to distinguish the crowd from performers, as they were all dressed the ‘same’ – an everyday group of people in the city – something I see everyday. Some performers chatted to people in the crowd, but would suddenly leave, as though called by a higher force. The lights flickered, pace and movement changed unannounced – I felt completely drawn-in; an eerie sense of unease and foreboding. The tangible tension, overwhelming vitality and sense of flow in the space of the Turbine Hall was truly amazing, a feeling that’s still with me after 5 days.
I’ve just heard Mark Lawson on Radio 4 interview Tino Seghal. Tino asks the performers a series of questions, so there is a rule structure, but their replies are their own. He’s interested in exploring individual and group agency, co-creating movement together.
