Midnight Painting
Midnight Painting is a performance painting realized in 2023 during the Salangen Biennale at Salangsverket, Norway, developed under the conditions of the midnight sun and the principle of leaving no traces.
Performance painting water, cornstarch, food coloring.
Midnight Painting was realized at the top of the mountain near the Salangsverket mine, under the conditions of the midnight sun. The work was developed in response to the biennial’s requirement of leave no traces, which demanded a rethinking of painterly practice and material permanence.
Working intuitively, I sought out a site where landscape, light, and exposure could actively shape the work. Using water mixed with cornstarch and food coloring, I created a temporary painting directly on the ground. The image emerged through the movement of liquid across the surface, guided by gravity, wind, and the material conditions of the site rather than by fixed gestures.
Through testing, I found that both the cornstarch and the color completely disappeared within two days. The work existed as a short-lived event, dissolving back into the environment without residue. The painting unfolded as a temporal drawing made by water — visible only for a brief moment before being absorbed by the landscape.