Silence Chamber , woven birch, rowan and aspen branches, fallen snow (sometimes melting), visits facilitated for participatory interaction, forest in Rastila, East Helsinki, dimensions intentionally unknown, 2022-23

The silence Chamber in Rastila forest is a project emergent from my response to the land near where I live and my growing relationship with the site. The chamber is woven from branches fallen from the trees on the site. It merges with the rocks and

Sample pages from the Silence Chamber journal. I recorded in my own handwriting what was emerging from participation with the site: chamber happenings, what I was learning from the forest, stories from session with participants, and my personal re

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The silence Chamber in Rastila forest is a project emergent from my response to the land near where I live and my growing relationship with the site. The chamber is woven from branches fallen from the trees on the site. It merges with the rocks and its shape was determined by preexisting forms. Its state is continually altered by shifting elements of changing seasons.

The chamber evolves by people inhabiting it. It is a place to crawl back inside the earth, rest your eyes from visual stimulation and the business of the mind, and cultivate internal silence. The chamber becomes a holding space. Sometimes this is a space for imaginings or memories to surface or a darkness out of which images can emerge. It is a timeless space because we detach from tracking and let ourselves sink.

This project is about intimate relating to the earth and our own mind, body and spirit. The practices we activate together begin with silence– listening inside and outside. They grow out of the silence into a dialogue with each other and the forest.

To have a guided or co-facilitated experience, schedule a session by emailing me at alyssacoffin11@gmail.com. Or, visit the chamber, lie inside, and create your own experience (coordinates in the instructions). Please read these instructions before visiting.