Together with the audience, Malina Suliman blurs the boundaries.
Practical information:
Date: Sunday September 6, 2026
Time: 14:00 - 15:00
Location: Bonnefanten, The Studio #11, second floor
Entrance: free on presentatin of a valid entrance ticket. Booking required.
Borderless performance
Walking in the Sea, the floor-filling world map of the same name, forms the centrepiece of Malina Suliman’s performance. The world map was handmade by her. It was an extremely precise and
labour-intensive process which Suliman spent a month on in the run-up to the exhibition at Bonnefanten.
The performance Walking in the Sea marks the end of her exhibition The Studio #11. Suliman performs a choreographed sequence whilst emitting non-verbal vocal sounds. At the same time, she invites the audience to walk across the fragile world map, made of clay and pigments, causing borders to gradually turn to dust and fade away completely.
The performance focuses on what maps usually fail to show: interrupted movements, silenced stories and the lasting emotional impact of conflict and migration.
Inspired by Alighiero Boetti
The Walking in the Sea project is inspired by the Mappa series by Alighiero Boetti (1940–1994). Together with embroiderers from Afghanistan and later Pakistan, Boetti created about 150 maps of different colours and sizes. Successive maps reflected geopolitical changes throughout the world, visualising territory disputes and regime changes. As a migrant, Suliman has a personal connection to the way the world is mapped and how borders affect people’s lives. Her personal experience informs her exploration of current issues such as war, restricted mobility and their consequences for vulnerable communities, particularly Afghan women. By creating her own world map, she symbolically crosses borders that currently cannot be crossed. With Walking in the Sea, Suliman creates a shared space where the public can reflect on memories, history and the interconnectedness of people.
SIGN UPConcept, Performance: Malina Suliman
Choreography: Malina Suliman & Darko Dragičević
With thanks to Zwaantje De Vries (vocal coach) and Cyriel Heemels (studio)
The performance Walking in the Sea was made possible by Stichting Niemeijer Fonds.
Header: Performance Malina Suliman, 2024. Photo Carlos Felipe Guzman