Ika Schwander
Maker
French-Dutch director and performer Ika Schwander (1999) explores multiplicity in all things. She invites her audience into this exploration through visual performances, films, and installations. The boundaries between these different media often blur during the process. Her work centers on themes such as trauma, care, religion, ecology, and death.
Biography
Ika studied Fine Art at Central Saint Martins in London and completed the performance program at Toneelacademie Maastricht in 2023. During her studies, she interned with Jan Decorte and Sigrid Vinks (Jamai je n'oublierai la mort) and Benjamin Abel Meirhaeghe (Madrigals).
She immediately garnered attention with her graduation performance è vero, è vero, è vero, about the aftermath and timelessness of sexual violence. The work was later shown at various venues and festivals, including Theater Cement, Frascati, Theater aan Zee (BE), and Monty (BE). Alongside theater, Ika makes short films (such as Prosecco Wisdom in collaboration with Lizzy Deacon) that screened at international festivals. She has also shown work in museums and exhibition spaces, including Museum Ludwig (Cologne) and Marres House for Contemporary Culture (Maastricht).
Ika's first production with Frascati Producties, of all your words and soft strange ways, is a mix of video art and performance. Inspired by climate activist Julia Butterfly Hill, who had to recover from a car accident at a young age, she explores how the (sick) body relates to a world in destruction. Ika shares the stage with 61-year-old Brazilian choreographer and performer Marcelo Evelin in a duet between two generations.
Ika's work seeks constant dialogue with its surroundings. She connects past with present, blends fiction with non-fiction, and infuses form and content with friction. In a world where everything is simplified, Ika aims to incite a 'multiplicity of feeling'.
