A triple point is the exact temperature and pressure at which a substance like water can occur in all its three states of gas, liquid, and solid simultaneously. Creating the conditions for this position of equilibrium—where sublimation, fusion, and vaporization meet—requires precision and control, but by determining it provides scientists with the basis for measuring temperature itself. The first of Creamcake’s Is it cold in the water? four-part event series at Berlin’s Liquidrom on May 10 is its own experiment in coexistence, taking over the city spa complex to find a scale of energy, emotion, and intensity that suits its community.
Invited artists respond to the discrete water environments of Liquidrom’s hot and cold basins and saunas, not only as a metaphorical space for oceanic healing, but also a material place where fixed identities and normative notions of bodies and corporeality sink as if into a swamp. Centering on the venue’s musical saltwater pool, Hayden Dunham performs around the liquid composition, in line with a sculpture and performance practice that traces transcorporeal assemblages connecting humans and other materials. Li Yilei employs hydrophones to capture the clandestine melodies echoing beneath the liquid surface in a sonic odyssey where the ethereal essence of water converges with the boundless realms of sound and consciousness. Simon(e) Jaikiriuma Paetau links queer slang and urban identities with Colombian rural myths in a performance that celebrates decolonial resistance, as well as fight against extractivist exploitation of natural and cultural resources. Meanwhile, fragrance artist Julianne Lee shares a hydro-feminist infusion for the steam room, reflecting scent-work’s incorporation with the language of water, its permeability, and the membrane encounter.
Split into one morning and one afternoon slot, all artists will take part in both events, with the exception of two additional participants. The program starting at 9:30am will include a reading performance session conceived and curated by Monilola Olayemi Ilupeju, and featuring four writers and poets exploring the slippery, intertwining, and shape-shifting mythology of enchanting sirens across oceans, cultures, and eras. Here, Jazmina Figueroa, Luzie Meyer, Nadia Marcus, and Savanna Morgan find a special power in the resonant and transmutative potential of the voice and written language, wielding it to challenge flattened, binary views of beauty, knowledge, and female* interiority. The following 12pm slot, will feature a two-act acoustic performance from Saint Precious with a cellist, a harpist, and strings composer, and exploring how one can find comfort in walking through the wave.
For those who wish to attend, please take note of Liquidrom’s spa guidelines, including leaving your phones and cameras behind, consuming food and drink at the bar, and smoking only in the designated outdoor area. Don’t forget your swimsuit for the pool, but be prepared to take it off if you wish to use the sauna!
