Presenzia

The project, developed for the third edition of the Nine Elephants Festival in Sofia, presents a synesthetic journey through the Botanical Garden BAN. Inspired by the names, characteristics and symbolic narratives of flowers – primarily Catharanthus, lavender, Plumbago, rose, Salvia (garden sage) and Strelitzia – Valentina Sciarra creates imaginary stories drawing from European, Eastern and African traditions. These narratives intertwine words, sounds and scents into immersive sensory experiences, where language and sound become hybrid, organic forms.

Each flower becomes a starting point for a narrative exploration, carrying traces of myths, rituals, healing knowledge and collective memories transmitted across cultures and generations. Through these botanical presences, the project reflects on the invisible connections that bind people to the natural world and to one another. By blurring the boundaries between reality and imagination, the stories invite visitors to perceive the garden not only as a physical space, but also as a living archive of memories, symbols and transformations.

Presenzia is the narrative voice of the project, performed by the artist herself, while the original music is composed by composer and sound artist Angelo Maria Farro. The word Presenzia evokes the idea of being present in the moment: the voice as a vibration emitted from the body into the world, a connection between the inner and outer dimensions and a symbol of identity and expression. It is not merely a means of communication, but an inseparable part of the work itself. Deep and measured, it unfolds slowly, like the invisible voice of nature, inviting the listener to attune to its subtle vibrations and rhythms. Word by word, it leads into ever deeper layers of the garden, revealing hidden, suspended stories that inhabit the green space and its unseen dimensions. In this way, listening becomes an act of attention and reciprocity — a way of entering into resonance with forms of life that often remain unheard.

Through simple gestures such as smelling, touching and observing, the experience invites visitors to explore alternative ways of reconnecting with themselves, with others and with nature, creating links between humans and non-humans, the visible and the invisible, reality and imagination. The project proposes a slower mode of perception, encouraging awareness of the delicate networks of interdependence that sustain life.

The deconstructed stories and sound compositions will remain permanently accessible on site via QR codes.