Back to the Future
2021
Participatory walk and performance in public space
In collaboration with Alessandro Marchi
Oslo, Norway
Back to the Future is a critical walk through Oslo developed in collaboration with Alessandro Marchi. Following the course of Hovinbekken, a river that flows partly underground, the walk traces the changing urban landscape from Tonsenhagen through Bjerke, Risløkka, Økern, Hasle, Ensjø and Galgeberg, ending in Grønland.
The route moves through neighbourhoods shaped by different periods of urban planning, from post-war housing developments to areas undergoing rapid redevelopment and gentrification. Along the way, the artists share historical information, urban observations and personal reflections, inviting participants to consider how the city's past and imagined future coexist in its present landscape.
The walk combines storytelling, observation and performative tasks that engage participants physically with their surroundings. Following the river's visible and hidden passages, participants encounter the relationship between urban infrastructure, bodily experience and the transformations taking place across Oslo.
Concept and artistic direction: Shahrzad Malekian and Alessandro Marchi
Supported by: KORO (Public Art Norway)