The female body and water. Both sources of life. Both squeezed and packed in plastic containers. Sachets on the one hand and on the other: beauty standards, social media impressions, societal expectations, the male gaze. What is the residue of the source of life? What is left behind when water is consumed? Plastic bags tossed on the street, in the gutters, at the beach, in the sea. Useless, lifeless, a burden really, suffocating nature and sustainability. And what remains when the female body relinquishes prescribed social concepts and transgresses boundaries, like water? 

Environmental degradation leading to climate change and gender inequality stem both from Western capitalist, consumeristic and patriarchal paradigms. Can we imagine and seek an alternative, viable for all? Repurposing the water sachets, I created a wearable garment. With a crew of creatives, we took photographs during a procession along Oxford Street. A non-performance took place on March 28th, without audience, just witnesses to an absurd act. We attempted to capture a glimpse of an alternate reality. An utopia where this garment is a dress, this woman is a model, and Oxford street can be the iconic set of a high-fashion photoshoot. In this utopia, can we imagine enough running drinkable water for everyone?

Concept and Performance: Léllé Demertzi 

Photography: Gideon Boadi

Cinematography: Mayworks Studio

GoPro: Calvin Ayivie

Creative Assistance: Marie La-Anyane

Production Assistance: Aseye Ohene

Presented at Open House Studio Accra, April 2021.