Sandrine Schaefer Curatorial

The only reward for hard work is more work

Location: near Pier 14 in Myrtle Beach  

Duration: 1 hour

"The piece speaks to the culture of servitude created by tourist economies. It calls into question what it means when your space is created for the enjoyment of outsiders, at the place where they’re most drawn to. In the same way the landscape of the beach is shaped by this economic model, so to does the action of the piece. Just behind me on the beach there are laborers in hotels and restaurants doing this same action. The work of cleaning -underpaid, underappreciated and often relegated to women- is a task that never ends. As I dig myself further into the sand, the piece speaks to the impending threat of climate change, which most of us must ignore because we are too busy working to survive. If the ocean swallows Myrtle Beach we lose everything we depend on for survival, but we are too busy surviving to worry about it." - Frances Ludwig

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photos by Sandrine Schaefer

Disjointed Communities

Location:  walking piece along Broadway St., Myrtle Beach 

Duration:  3 hours

In this piece, Thompson explores the relationship between the urban landscape and local communities. Myrtle Beach is a city that is tailored to tourists, prioritizing visitors over long term residents and local businesses. In the off season, one is confronted by neglected storefronts and underutilized green spaces around 522 Broadway St and the surrounding blocks (a place considered the "heart of Myrtle Beach"). This prioritization becomes even more glaring when examining the effect of "eminent domain" and the consideration of the homeless population. Individuals are left marginalized by anti-loitering and anti-camping laws. These individuals, with nowhere else to turn, are trapped in a cycle of displacement and exclusion, denied even the basic right to occupy public spaces.  Through different gestures in this walking performance, Thompson imagines how to collectively cultivate an environment that fosters equity for all members of the local community. With a playful focus on the walkability of this area, Thompson's piece offers participants to walk with her and reflect on the potential of this city and its ability to nurture belonging.

Directed byValentin Lencina-Rabidoux

Location: Riverwalk Stage in Downtown Conway, SC and Plyer Park Stage in Downtown Myrtle Beach, SC

Duration: 20 minutes

What's a festival without a parade? March of Progress is a comedic narrative parade with music and lots of audience participation! This moving piece centers around a bickering King and Queen arguing over the land and need the audience's help to build an army and march towards victory. However, the King and Queen are joined by their mysterious robotic underlings, whose loyalties are soon subject to change...

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photos by Sandrine Schaefer

Addiction Cycle

Location: near pier 14 in Myrtle Beach 

Duration: 15 minutes

After witnessing the generational impacts of substance abuse within her Native American communities, Rogers' performance addresses the hardships of escaping addiction cycles and the harmful stereotypes that come with it. Rogers writes phrases and words associated with addiction cycles in the sand with a beer bottle. The tide repeatedly washes away the phrases as she writes, representing the struggle to maintain a healthy cycle of habits to avoid relapse of addiction.

The following collection of documentation features site-sensitive performance artworks that explore the theme of sustainability.  

Autumn Belvin, Water Fountain, 2024  00:00:48- 00:04:15

Inspired by VALIE EXPORT’s seminal series, Body Configurations (1972-82) Belvin explores a familiar and public place through intentional gesture and attempted stillness.   

Location: Edwards Courtyard Fountain, Coastal Carolina University, Conway, SC

Niko Moratto, New Utilizations, 2024  00:04-:15- 00:09:00

Litter floods the beach every summer, harming the environment and detracting from visitors’ experience with nature. In this performance, Moratto finds new uses for trash found along a beach he has grown up with and has a deep connection to.  

Location: Garden City Beach, Myrtle Beach, SC  

Sandrine Schaefer, Practicing for Death, 2022   00:09:00- 00:10:45

In this series, Sandrine contemplates their mortality and interconnectedness with their environment.   

Location: field in Bondville, VT  

Cebastian Erin Thompson, 544, 2023  00:10:45- 00:27:40

Thompson walks back and forth across a crosswalk on a busy road near our university campus where many pedestrian accidents have occurred. She drops flowers on the crosswalk as she walks. She installs flowers along the side of the road to serve as markers of these accidents and memorial objects for those who have lost their lives along this road.   

Location: Highway 544 near Coastal Carolina University, Conway, SC  

Frances Ludwig, The only reward for hard work is more work, 2024  00:27:40-00:29:49

In this performance, Ludwig explores the culture of servitude created by tourist economies and the impending threat of climate change. Ludwig questions what it means when a space built for the enjoyment of outsiders. Through the repetitive action of sweeping, this piece explores how the landscape of the beach is shaped by this economic model. As Ludwig digs herself deeper into the sand, laborers in hotels and restaurants behind her engage in the same action of cleaning, a never ending task that is underpaid, under-appreciated and often relegated to women.  

Location: the shore of Myrtle Beach, SC