Filmic Bodies

Maternal Breath

In Brief: Filmic Bodies

This page presents "Filmic Bodies," a non-linear exploration of the interplay between embodied practice and film. Through fragmented sequences captured during performances in both private and public spaces, my films document the shared breath and embodied memory that shape my work. The concept of filmic breath is central—where the rhythmic pulse of my mother’s and my own breath guides the pace and editing of the visuals. These fragments, often displayed concurrently in workshops, invite viewers to engage with memory, affect, and the transformative power of collective embodied practice.

Witness to Embodiment

At sites of the Virgin Mary, my practice transforms the witnessing of family history into a living act of embodiment. I journey on pilgrimages—to Fatima, Rosary Way, Lourdes, and Lough Derg—and even walk el Caminos solo, retracing paths steeped in ancestral affects.

My grandmother once carried a Lourdes rosary, passed to my mother and now to me; each step and breath becomes a gesture to reorientate our transgenerational maternal legacy.

Each step,

Each breath,

becomes a moment of listening,

attuning to both grief and transformation,

reimagining identity

and reclaiming the shared breath of our maternal histories.

Filmic Bodies: A Dynamic Dialogue of Breath and Memory

Filmic Bodies is a core element of my embodied research practice, where film transcends mere documentation to become an active mode of intervention. In this work, film captures the ephemeral interplay of breath, movement, and voice—a process that both records and transforms the lived experience of transgenerational maternal shame. Utilizing handheld recording techniques and a match-on-action editing approach, my films literally breathe, documenting intimate moments shared with my mother alongside public engagements across various sites in Ireland. This creates a dynamic dialogue between personal memory and collective experience.

These filmic bodies are not static archives; they serve as live interventions in workshops and exhibitions. By integrating sonic and visual rhythms, the films reveal the tension between silence and expression and show how our bodies retain echoes of trauma and resilience. This approach is grounded in my practice-based research, which explores how diasporic maternal histories are inscribed through embodied methodologies.

Filmic Bodies challenges conventional narrative structures by inviting viewers to reconsider how memory, affect, and identity are mediated through performance. In doing so, it opens new avenues for dialogue in both academic and artistic contexts—transforming film into a tool that reimagines our collective past and present through the language of breath and movement.

Filmic breath

"Filmic Bodies" is a non-linear exploration of audio-visual fragments captured during performances in both ‘private’ and ‘public’ air—from the intimate space of a dining room table to the rhythmic spaces featuring the Virgin Mary. In our embodied workshops, these fragments are played at intervals corresponding to each filmic body, merging with participants’ embodied presence. Here, the concept of filmic breath becomes central. The shared breath of my mother and me not only determines the tempo of the visuals but also guides the cuts and edits in the filmic body.

I layer water scenes filmed in London and Ireland with imagery from spaces where the Virgin Mary is prominently featured. Although I have explored filming at various Marian sites, the key locations that inform this practice are Lough Derg (Ireland), The Rosary Way (Dublin), Fatima (Portugal), and Lourdes (France).

In these sessions, body and filmic body breathe together—responding to one another in the moments we find ourselves together. The filmic breath is not merely observed; it is felt, as its fragmentary, non-linear nature invites us to experience disorientations, reorientations, and the layered echoes of memory and maternal legacy. This process challenges traditional narrative structures, opening a space where the pulse of shared breath reconfigures the maternal as transformative.

My current practice is anchored in four site-specific spaces:

Rosary Way, Dublin,

Lourdes, France

Fatima, Portugal

Lough Derg, Ireland

These four filmic bodies form distinct parts of the mysteries of the rosary, continuously reorientating and evolving. In my embodied workshops, these films are projected at intervals—and sometimes simultaneously on different walls—creating a dynamic, breathing body within the workshop space. Each iteration is uniquely formulated, reflecting the collaborative energy and shifting dialogues of the moment.

Bodily Breath

Filmic Breath

Collide

The films below are part of an ongoing process that informs these core filmic bodies.

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Joyfulness)

Dublin

An ongoing filmic meditation on breath, memory, and embodiment

Dublin’s Rosary Way

Based in Dublin, my film practice for this piece began when a friend took me to a life-size replica of Lourdes. In a car park behind the church, the Rosary Way unexpectedly captivated me and became the film’s focal point. At each stage of the rosary, I repeatedly read my aunt’s letter aloud in the ‘public’ air, filming for 15 seconds at a time to capture the rhythm of my breath as I recorded sections of each stone and ceramic relief. I have returned repeatedly, making this film an ongoing work in progress

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Sorrowful)

Rome

A dual filmic meditation on breath, ritual, and memory across convent spaces

Rome and Venice

This work is in progress as I continuously return to a convent in Rome and one in Venice, where I witness and record the interplay of light, shadow, and silence—allowing the atmosphere to guide the unfolding narrative. In Rome, the convent offers a reflective space for exploring the internal rhythms of embodied memory.

While my film in Venice captures the luminous dance of water, Marian imagery, and shared breath, the work in Rome focuses on the intimate daily ritual and the quiet pauses within such a space. The interplay and reorientation of light, shadow, and ritual creates a dialogue between layers of memory, breath and presence. Together, these films form a dual narrative—constantly moving between internal and external spaces—that invites viewers to experience how filmic breath becomes both a witness and a medium for transformation, reconfiguring our understanding of maternal legacy and embodied experience.

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Sorrowful)

Venice

A dual filmic meditation on breath, ritual, and memory across convent spaces

Rome and Venice

Filmed upon repeated returns to Venice over many years, this work explores the sorrowful mystery of the rosary and the depths of the Irish Catholic maternal through filmic breath. In a convent by the canal, I capture 15-second fragments of my repeated reading of my aunt’s letter, intertwining personal and collective memory. The film serves as a meditative practice of embodied presence in spaces like convents, reflecting on the historical weight of convent life and its contemporary manifestations. Here, filmic breath becomes a witness to maternal vulnerability and resilience, inviting viewers to contemplate the enduring legacy of transgenerational affect as I navigate my breath and its entanglements with Ireland and London.

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Sorrowful)

Lourdes

A filmic meditation on breath, ritual, and maternal legacy, tracing inherited memory

Lourdes

This work, set in Lourdes—a key site in my research—marks where my filmic practice took root. Running in parallel to my explorations of the Rosary Way behind the “Irish Lourdes” in Dublin, this piece emerged from my first pilgrimage to Lourdes, ignited by a rosary passed down from my grandmother to my mother and now carried by me. The leather pouch that holds the rosary bears the touch of my grandmother, my mother, and myself, accompanying me on every journey and becoming an integral part of my practice.

In Lourdes, I capture fleeting moments of ritual, breath, and maternal legacy. This space has been essential for navigating my bodily gestures and responses, allowing me to attune to the subtle signals of embodied memory. These filmic fragments intertwine the personal with collective memory, forming a meditative dialogue that speaks to the enduring impact of transgenerational affect. This work reflects on how embodied practices of remembrance transform inherited grief into a living narrative—each inhalation carrying the weight of history, each exhalation opening space for new possibilities.

Through this ongoing process, my camera becomes a witness to the textures of loss, love, and resilience, inviting viewers to explore the layered mysteries of maternal experience in a sacred yet ever-changing space.

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Sorrowful)

Lourdes/Tsarino

A continuation of my filmic practice from Lourdes, this work explores breath, water, and ritual in an abandoned Bulgarian village, weaving connections between memory, landscape, and maternal legacy.

This film extends my earlier work in Lourdes, conceived in response to an artist residency that transformed an abandoned village in Bulgaria into an art space. In this film, I capture the movement of water and the interplay of breath within the deserted village—filming the stream as it runs through the landscape and recording sonic engagements that became part of my daily ritual. I would trek down to the river, where the rhythmic flow and shared breath guided my practice. Together with other artists and local villagers from the Tsarino collective, we returned to the river to initiate embodied circular readings.

The work explores the sorrowful dimensions of the Irish Catholic maternal through the convergence of ritual, the fluidity of water, and the intimate act of shared breath. In these layered visual fragments, breath becomes a conduit that merges the atmospheres of distinct sites, weaving a dialogue between differing temporalities.

This film was projected in the mountains of Bulgaria and formed part of an embodied workshop.

For more information, please visit Tsarino.

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Glorious)

Gougana Barra

A filmic meditation on breath, ritual, and rediscovery, this work revisits Gougane Barra—where personal and collective memory converge—transforming a once-forgotten space into a site of embodied reflection.

This film is set in Gougane Barra, a site I visited repeatedly as a young person during family trips to Ireland. The church and its lake are etched in my memory, yet a hidden space behind the church—where the Stations of the Cross are arranged—remained forgotten until now. Reminiscent of the surprising discovery of the Rosary Way in Dublin, this unexpected station has become a focal point in my work.

In this film, I capture the delicate interplay of breath, ritual, and memory as I reconnect with a space that bridges personal history and collective embodiment. Through filmic breath, the work transforms familiar landscapes into sites of luminous rediscovery, inviting viewers to contemplate the layered mysteries of maternal legacy and inherited affect.

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Glorious), Rocher de la Vierge

This film captures the movement of bodies along the Rocher de la Vierge, where breath, sea, and memory come together in a cycle of return and reflection.

During my journey to Lourdes, I visited the Rocher de la Vierge—where the presence of the Virgin Mary crowns a rock, embraced by the endless sea. In this work, my body was pulled to this space. I observed how bodies flowed along the rock’s edge, reaching its end only to turn back and gaze at the Virgin Mary. The film interweaves intimate moments of embodied recollection with the elemental energy of the sea. Here, the rhythmic pulse of breath transforms into a living testament to maternal legacy and resilience.

Filmic Bodies

In-Progress

2024

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Glorious),

Gougana Barra

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Sorrowful),

Fátima

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Sorrowful),

Venice and Rome

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Sorrowful),

Lourdes

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Glorious),

Rocher de la Vierge

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Four Mysteries of the Irish Catholic Maternal (Joyfulness),

Rosary Way Dublin

Previous Filmic Bodies

2023

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Irish Catholic Maternal, Ireland and London

‘Feminine-to-Come’, Ireland and London

The Feminine-to-Come and the Poetics of Filmic Breath, Ireland and London

Filmic Breath – Hydro Feminine

The Thames

Entanglements of Filmic Breath

2024

Michèle Saint-Michel’s somatic film, 21 Scores for Losing Yourself in a Body, featuring Marie Theresa Crick’s somatic experiencing session, Artists’ Film & Moving Image Graduate Show, Laurie Grove Baths | Jul 2024

Poetics of Filmic Breath in the Irish Catholic Maternal

Ireland and London

This film explores the connection between water, breath, and memory, weaving together water spaces in London and Ireland to trace the rhythms of maternal affect and shared presence.

This film explores the entanglements of water spaces in London and Ireland, capturing how our shared breath transforms the filmic body. Through composed sequences—ranging from the flow of the Thames to the waters of Ireland—the film meditates on the transmission of maternal affect and memory. As my mother and I breathe together and apart, our rhythms guide the filmic body.

‘Feminine-to-Come’

Ireland and London

The Feminine-to-Come and the Poetics of Filmic Breath

Ireland and London

This film traces the emergence of a transformative feminine through filmic breath, layering intimate recitations, archival voices, and submerged rhythms of breath across Ireland and London.

This film explores the emergence of a transformative feminine through the lens of filmic breath across Ireland and London. It layers multiple audio textures—from intimate performances in which my mother and I recite my aunt’s letter, to archival recordings of priests and the voices of the Irish diaspora in London. Some breaths resonate clearly, others are submerged, and some rush by with the speed of water, eluding capture. Together, these layered sounds create a dynamic interplay of voice and silence that interrogates maternal affect, collective memory, and the promise of a feminine-to-come.

Filmic Breath – Hydro Feminine

The Thames

This foundational film in my research explores breath as both an embodied and cinematic phenomenon, weaving hydro-feminism, memory, and maternal subjectivity through water and shared breath.

"Filmic Breath – Hydro Feminine" is a seminal work in my practice-based research, marking an early exploration of what I now term “filmic breath.” Developed during my MRes in Visual Cultures—when I engaged deeply with the Ocean as Archive module—this film laid the groundwork for my ongoing inquiry into how breath functions as both an embodied and cinematic phenomenon. Rooted in hydro-feminism, it theorises breath in relation to water, memory, and maternal subjectivity, and has become central to my PhD research.

In this film, I meditate on the search for the "other feminine"—a vision of the "feminine-to-come"—expressed through the dynamic interplay of shared breath and water imagery. The work weaves together carefully selected texts and archival fragments, capturing the rhythmic pulse of breath as it transforms everyday moments into a dialogue between personal history and collective memory. Using match-on-action techniques, I document subtle cadences and embodied gestures that echo the fluidity of the ocean.

This film is not merely an aesthetic exploration but a critical intervention that reconfigures the legacy of maternal affect. By positioning breath as a site of transformation, "Filmic Breath – Hydro Feminine" challenges conventional narratives of embodiment, interrogating the tactile presence of water, the ephemeral nature of memory, and the enduring imprint of transgenerational affect.

Recognizing the potential for deeper engagement with these concepts, I later audited Ocean as Archive to refine my interdisciplinary approach and expand my embodied practice. This film, along with the experimental movement-based workshops I developed during that time, forms a vital part of my methodological framework. Together, they challenge traditional academic and artistic research, opening new avenues for engaging with Irish Catholic transgenerational shame, dementia studies, maternal relationality, and trauma.

Through "Filmic Breath – Hydro Feminine," I invite viewers to experience the delicate balance between retention and release—a poetic exploration of how the body and film become intertwined in a continuous act of transformation.

21 Scores for Losing Yourself in a Body

Embodied Breath: A Somatic Encounter with Shared Air

This film captures a moment of deep bodily attunement, where breath, tension, and release unfold as part of a shared somatic experience. Through a guided full-body scan, the work explores the multi-temporalities of breath and embodiment, revealing how presence and sensation emerge through subtle shifts in muscle, air, and awareness.

As part of Saint-Michel’s filmic project, which connected 34 artists through a series of somatic event scores, this piece documents a guided full-body scan undertaken by Marie Theresa Crick. Led by Saint-Michel’s instructions, Marie Theresa systematically moves through areas of tension, allowing each to soften and dissolve. Her facial muscles slacken, her shoulders ease away from elevation, and her breath becomes shallow—marking a transition from conscious control to embodied surrender.

The film invites us to witness the micro-movements of presence and absence in the body, foregrounding the ontology of shared air. The interplay between voice, breath, and embodied response collapses fixed notions of time, allowing a dynamic engagement with stillness, movement, and perception. In this state of attunement, breath becomes both a medium of exchange and a site of transformation—highlighting the delicate interdependence between body, environment, and the unseen forces that shape our experience.

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