Performativity of the Memory of Religious Places through Sound and Image

Abstract

In this essay, we explore and deepen the confluence between sound and image, linking and relating concepts, purposes and coherence of artistic practices mediating and reconfiguring the memory of religious places. We observed that the performativity of memory, as an autobiographical concept, can be enhanced through live audiovisual performances in religious places. We have established that the performativity of memory in religious places can promote a spatial ‘self’, creating dynamic, immersive and physical experiences in the religious places. And we argue that the construction of this spatial ‘self’ involves processes of social and artistic reconfiguration that contribute to transforming not only the social dynamics within the community but also the artistic representations of memory. These main findings were reached following a process of research through artistic practice, thus a systematization of the processes involved in approaching three religious places. It also assumes the (de)construction of the sense of place throughout a personal reading on the mediation through nonverbal means. In this research, we also observed that the aesthetic and performative configurations can have an impact on the most individual manifestations of religion, religiosity and religious belief, influencing the interpretation and creation of meaning, evoking emotional and spiritual responses.