2021
Sound installation, 4x felted rugs
Voice by Raluca Croitoru, Pilar Mata Dupont, Tracy Hanna
Composer Janne Kosmos
A Year Without A Summer explores waiting, perception, and uncertainty through a sound installation combined with hand-made felted rugs. Inspired by the year 1816 – known as “The Year Without a Summer,” when the eruption of Mount Tambora caused global climatic disruption – the work reflects on the social and emotional impacts of waiting under conditions of loss and instability.
The installation features four confessions voiced by different characters, each navigating states of hope, powerlessness, and anticipation. These narratives, written as scripts inspired by a range of texts, articles, personal experiences, fables, and conversations with ten individuals about waiting, correspond to the seasons. Together, they examine how waiting shapes lived experience and relationships.
The project was developed through collaborative sound recording with vocalists Raluca Croitoru, Pilar Mata Dupont, and Tracy Hanna, alongside composer Janne Piksen, integrating voice, atmosphere, and texture. The hand-made felted rugs add a tactile, intimate dimension to the immersive environment, inviting the audience to physically engage with the layered histories and emotions embedded in the work.
A Year Without A Summer is the second episode of the project What Happens If We Wait Together? (2020-2023)
Documentation by Marta Hryniuk and Sophie Bates
Special thanks to Marta Hryniuk, Sophie Bates and WET
Made possible by a financial contribution from CBK Rotterdam and Droom en Daad
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