Liquid Becomings — the European Pavilion 2024 — was a travelling pavilion and radically networked stage. In 2024 it took the form of four creative journeys by small boats along four of Europe’s greatest rivers: the Danube, the Rhine, the Tagus, and the Vistula. The four journeys crossed 11 countries, travelling a combined distance of 1.394 kilometres.

 

After sailing on the four European rivers, the artistic crews came together in Lisbon for a three-day festival on 7-9th November 2024, in a rich series of performances, art exhibitions, debates, concerts, literature, get-togethers, and parties.

This multidisciplinary programme placed artistic creation and reflection at the heart of the debate on Europe’s future, promoting meaningful dialogues between artists and local communities.

 

Neda Kovinic | The Tagus river| art contribution entitled: Un(re)learning Rivers

Installation of the plants, stones, clay and earth collected down the river, including drawings, and a live performance at Quinta Alegre

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To melt or to flow—this duality, rooted in the river’s etymology, can be deeply felt when floating down the River Tejo and taking in its surrounding landscapes. The fractures here are not just in the hills and ground; they cut through time and realities.

Traveling down the Tejo from Spain to Portugal reveals conflicts surrounding its waters: dams as barriers, dividing people from the river they once freely fished and farmed beside. The struggle for control—whether channeling drinking water to cities or irrigating farmland for export—continues to harm the Tejo’s ecosystem, and limited river transport further isolates it. This landscape brings to mind mythical mermaids—naiads or serenas in Spanish and Portuguese lore, and the rusalka in Balkan tales.

Inspired by these experiences, I created a “river wedding dress,” a veil sewn with local plants, feathers and shells, complemented by a half-finished knitted piece with threads spilling out. These gentle, meditative crafts connect me to my female ancestors. The performance channels a feminist understanding of the river’s mythic energy and watery forces, embodying the power it could reclaim if freed from barriers, water diversions, and exploitation, to embrace us once more in its mystery.