Exhibition: Minami-No-Tori
Centraal Museum Utrecht
11 September - 4 October 2026
Minami-Torishima, Southern Bird Island, is a tiny Japanese island in the Pacific Ocean where scientists believe a seemingly endless supply of rare metals lies buried 6,000 meters deep in the seabed. These are all the metals required for smartphones, wind turbines, batteries, and computers. These rare-earth elements (REEs) are the holy grail of the modern age. Yet mining them would undoubtedly cause immense damage to the oceans and marine life. Minami-no-tori laments the bittersweet reality of a society consumed by greed and ultimately destroying itself. Humanity continues to dream of more and better, only to discover that the Earth and the universe eventually reclaim control.
Minami-no-tori [Southern Bird] is not only a film but also an audiovisual installation. Visitors walk through a space featuring eight large screens. On each screen, a singer appears; together, they form an eight-part choir. They sing, “Minami-no-tori, the southern bird will guide you.” They sing, “Nothing is heavier than gold when you're drowning.” Standing at the center, you feel immersed in a sea of voices, with all eight singers equally present and equally loud, surrounding you from every direction.
Credits
Singers: Olga Grammatikopoulou, Sean Bell, Maria Eichler, Maryana Golovchenko, Iolaysa Braga Tavares, Ishtar Bakhtali, Alba Roorda Martinez, Emily Pahlawan
Music and concept: Daniel Cross
Lyrics: Andriana Minou
Editing: Niels Dekker
Sound mix: Mikel le Roy
Sound recording: Ira Helffrich
Camera: Sami El Hassani, Rosa Krastel
1st AC: Tristan Adelaar
Gaffer: Erwin Smit
Best boy: Simon Ruesink
Lighting assistant: Coral Reyneveld
Clapper / assistant: Paula Hankes
Producer: The Doncaster Institute of Change
Project manager: Kristine Kavelaars
Curator: Natalie Dubois Sound palet digital supervisor ROB DAS, Audio Recording IRA HELFFERICH, JAN WOUTER STAM, JONAR VERBART, ARMANI VAN ENGELEN, Sound re-recording mixer MIKEL LE ROY, Sound palets LENARD HEIJNE, ANTAL VAN NIE, Editor NIELS DEKKER, Delays & re-taping MATHIJN DEN DUIJF, Set dressing AMERENTSE KOOPMAN, Costumes ALBA ROORDA MARTINEZ, Video Loop Technician PAUL VAN TWIST, Technical assistance MARCEL CROESE, Max programming MARCEL WIERCKX, Workshops THANASSIS DELIGIANNIS, MATHIJS LEEUWIS, Artistic director NKK/NXT IMRE PLOEG, Choreography DIONNE VERWEIJ, Choirmaster BÉNI CSILLAG, Graphic design DAVE HAVERKORT, Assistant to Gaite Jansen DORIS CROSS, Stills KARLIJN SCHEEN, Catering JILLES Catering, ROWENA ELSHOT, Night guard IGOR SHYLO, Producers RICHARD VALK, ELINE VAN HAGEN, ELIZABETH FRANCISCO, With thanks GUSTA KORTEWEG, DDB-lighting, ROB VAN DEN BROEK, SANDER SEBREGTS, FIEN DE GRAAF, AUG VAN WOERKOM, STEPHEN KIPP, EYE Filmmuseum, CONTROLLUX, CAM-A-LOT CAMERA RENTAL, NEDERLANDS KAMERKOOR, ROSA ENSEMBLE, THE DONCASTER ART FOUNDATION, STICHTING PET, HET CONCREET TILBURG, JURJEN VAN BEEK (STICHTING BOEI), ZIMIHC
Centraal Museum Utrecht
11 September - 4 October 2026
Minami-Torishima, Southern Bird Island, is a tiny Japanese island in the Pacific Ocean where scientists believe a seemingly endless supply of rare metals lies buried 6,000 meters deep in the seabed. These are all the metals required for smartphones, wind turbines, batteries, and computers. These rare-earth elements (REEs) are the holy grail of the modern age. Yet mining them would undoubtedly cause immense damage to the oceans and marine life. Minami-no-tori laments the bittersweet reality of a society consumed by greed and ultimately destroying itself. Humanity continues to dream of more and better, only to discover that the Earth and the universe eventually reclaim control.
Minami-no-tori [Southern Bird] is not only a film but also an audiovisual installation. Visitors walk through a space featuring eight large screens. On each screen, a singer appears; together, they form an eight-part choir. They sing, “Minami-no-tori, the southern bird will guide you.” They sing, “Nothing is heavier than gold when you're drowning.” Standing at the center, you feel immersed in a sea of voices, with all eight singers equally present and equally loud, surrounding you from every direction.
Credits
Singers: Olga Grammatikopoulou, Sean Bell, Maria Eichler, Maryana Golovchenko, Iolaysa Braga Tavares, Ishtar Bakhtali, Alba Roorda Martinez, Emily Pahlawan
Music and concept: Daniel Cross
Lyrics: Andriana Minou
Editing: Niels Dekker
Sound mix: Mikel le Roy
Sound recording: Ira Helffrich
Camera: Sami El Hassani, Rosa Krastel
1st AC: Tristan Adelaar
Gaffer: Erwin Smit
Best boy: Simon Ruesink
Lighting assistant: Coral Reyneveld
Clapper / assistant: Paula Hankes
Producer: The Doncaster Institute of Change
Project manager: Kristine Kavelaars
Curator: Natalie Dubois Sound palet digital supervisor ROB DAS, Audio Recording IRA HELFFERICH, JAN WOUTER STAM, JONAR VERBART, ARMANI VAN ENGELEN, Sound re-recording mixer MIKEL LE ROY, Sound palets LENARD HEIJNE, ANTAL VAN NIE, Editor NIELS DEKKER, Delays & re-taping MATHIJN DEN DUIJF, Set dressing AMERENTSE KOOPMAN, Costumes ALBA ROORDA MARTINEZ, Video Loop Technician PAUL VAN TWIST, Technical assistance MARCEL CROESE, Max programming MARCEL WIERCKX, Workshops THANASSIS DELIGIANNIS, MATHIJS LEEUWIS, Artistic director NKK/NXT IMRE PLOEG, Choreography DIONNE VERWEIJ, Choirmaster BÉNI CSILLAG, Graphic design DAVE HAVERKORT, Assistant to Gaite Jansen DORIS CROSS, Stills KARLIJN SCHEEN, Catering JILLES Catering, ROWENA ELSHOT, Night guard IGOR SHYLO, Producers RICHARD VALK, ELINE VAN HAGEN, ELIZABETH FRANCISCO, With thanks GUSTA KORTEWEG, DDB-lighting, ROB VAN DEN BROEK, SANDER SEBREGTS, FIEN DE GRAAF, AUG VAN WOERKOM, STEPHEN KIPP, EYE Filmmuseum, CONTROLLUX, CAM-A-LOT CAMERA RENTAL, NEDERLANDS KAMERKOOR, ROSA ENSEMBLE, THE DONCASTER ART FOUNDATION, STICHTING PET, HET CONCREET TILBURG, JURJEN VAN BEEK (STICHTING BOEI), ZIMIHC