Cooling Waters — A Video Walk
With Cooling Waters — A Video Walk, Areal Böhler is presenting, for the first time in collaboration with Tara Ocean Foundation, an exhibition about the sea, research and wanderlust between 3 and 5 July 2026. The Video Walk, spread across the site, brings together film and performance works that emerged from artist residencies aboard the Tara Ocean Foundation’s research vessels.
Since time immemorial, water has eluded our attempts to understand it fully. The oceans have been described, mapped, surveyed and explored through myths and stories, yet they remain full of secrets. The exhibition brings together some of these approaches in the form of artistic works that engage with the oceans as spaces for research, life and culture. Straddling the line between scientific expedition and dreamlike visual space, a trail emerges that guides visitors through the Areal Böhler and incorporates various locations within the former industrial site into the exhibition.
For more than twenty years, the Foundation has been researching the world’s oceans and inviting artists to accompany expeditions on its research vessels. The resulting works combine scientific findings with artistic interpretation, transforming our perspective on the ecological, political and cultural dimensions of the seas.
Positions
The exhibition features works by Maéva Bardy, who has filmed a Tara polar expedition – shown on a large video screen at the entrance to the site; Malik Nejmi with Une Odyssée, a video triptych presented on the crane runway; Yoann Lelong with a film project documenting a research expedition in the Mediterranean, presented on the outer wall of the Schmiedehalle; Katia Kameli with Puits aux chaînes in the cool indoor area; Giulia Grossmann with contributions from Mission Microbiome in the display case by the water tower; and Ellie Ga with the performance The Fortunetellers. International star Pierre Huyghe is also represented with a contribution entitled A Journey that wasn’t; on show is his film, which links an expedition to Antarctica with its subsequent staging in New York’s Central Park. The performance was accompanied by a 40-piece orchestra, whose composition was based on the topographical data of an island visited during the expedition and combined to create an impressive cinematic work.
Curated by Valentine Boccas and Miriam Hausner. Curatorial assistence by Emma Rüther.
