What Lingers Beneath

L aura Grissard, an artist living in North Leitrim, Ireland, whose work spans performance, painting, and photography, delves deeply into the interplay between memory, mythology, and nature. Her creative approach is rooted in landscapes, exploring the cultural and ancestral connections embedded within natural environments. Drawing from her mixed heritage and childhood experiences in Ireland and France, Grissard’s work celebrates the sensory depth of nature while honoring the stories of overlooked female figures in mythology. In the interview below, she discusses the influences of her upbringing, the role of olfactory memories in her practice, and the evocative ceremonial elements within her performances, including her performance film What Lingers Beneath.

What Lingers Beneath is a deeply introspective exploration of the layers of memory, mythology, and ecology present within bog landscapes. The film is a fusion of performance and visual storytelling, unfolding in peatlands’ hauntingly beautiful yet fragile ecosystems. Grissard employs her body as a medium to engage with these ancestral spaces, creating a dialogue between the human form and the land. Through choreographed movements, ceremonial chanting, and symbolic gestures, she evokes themes of transformation, regeneration, and the cyclical nature of life and death.

The film’s title underscores its intent to uncover the hidden—both literally within the layers of the peat and metaphorically within cultural memory. Grissard draws on Irish mythology, particularly the representation of women in folklore, to re-center female narratives that have been overshadowed by time. The performance integrates materials sourced directly from the bog, such as peat and flora, to create a tactile connection between the audience and the landscape.

Through What Lingers Beneath, Grissard invites viewers into a sensory and emotional experience that bridges the past and present. The ceremonial chanting in the film, which blends English and Irish and is layered and reversed, heightens the mysticism, creating an atmosphere of timelessness. The film not only honors the deep evolutionary and cultural history of bogs but also raises awareness about their ecological significance and vulnerability in the face of climate change. It is both a tribute and a call to action—a reflection on the enduring ties between humanity and the natural world.

This November, we had the pleasure of sitting down with Laura to delve into her creative journey and explore facets of her work.
Gayil Nalls: Can you share an overview of your work and explain how it intertwines memory, mythology, and nature? In what ways do these themes resonate through your creative process, and how do they shape the narratives you choose to explore?

Laura Grissard: Landscapes deeply influence my work. I am interested in the repositories of cultural memory and links to folkloric traditions within the natural materials found in these environments. Mythology, with its capacity to convey narratives that once explained natural phenomena in the absence of scientific understanding, is a foundational source of inspiration for me. It offers a framework for interpreting aspects of the world that might otherwise remain elusive. I engage with these themes by incorporating storytelling through embodied, performative actions. I am particularly drawn to the mysticism and liminal spaces within folklore and mythology and the roles and representations of women within these narratives. This focus has led me to explore the relationship between the body and the landscape as intertwined realms. Through painting and photography, I examine these concepts, employing both traditional and experimental techniques in my creative process.

Tell us more about your ancestral roots and their impact on your performance and filmmaking. How do you draw upon these influences, and what aspects of your heritage do you seek to convey or honor through your work in a bogscape?

I was born in Marseille, a city shaped by its bustling port and rich in cultural diversity, which has given me a mixed ethnic heritage. Growing up in this environment fostered an openness to different cultures and languages and a strong connection to nature, cultivated during the time I spent outdoors as a child, especially in Ireland. I am also deeply inspired by the history and mythology of Irish women, who hold a powerful yet often overlooked place in our cultural narratives and have faced significant injustices. Ireland’s female deities embody resilience, strength and wisdom has frequently been overshadowed within traditional narratives, yet their legacy endures. Through my work in bog landscapes, I aim to honor these ancestral influences and to re-center these female figures, exploring their connection to the land and their enduring impact on our heritage.

Can you tell us about your childhood and the role nature played in shaping your olfactory memories? Were there particular scents from the natural world—plants, trees, earth—that left a lasting impression? How do these smells influence your connection to certain landscapes or inspire your work today?

My childhood was deeply immersed in the natural world both in Ireland and France, shaped by a profound exposure to both domesticated and wild animals, and by the landscapes that surrounded me. This early life fostered a respectful and empathetic
approach to animals and an ingrained sense of responsibility towards the environment, principles that have continued to influence my work and worldview. These impressions from my childhood remain particularly vivid and have shaped my sensory connection to landscapes. The scent of Lavender fields, the sweetness of Mimosa flowers, the scent of Birch and Beech trees, the earthy richness of peat, the bright aroma of flowering gorse, and from the Mediterranean to the bracing North Atlantic. These are all deeply embedded in my memory. Each of these scents carries a unique resonance with me, allowing me to forge a connection between specific natural settings and emotional landscapes. These memories have influenced my artistic practice by grounding my work in place and evoking the sensory depth of nature, connecting memory, material, and the cultural landscapes that I explore.

Through these sensory elements, I aim to convey an intimate engagement with the natural world and to evoke a shared memory and reverence for the environment in those who encounter my work.

The chanting in your performance is both haunting and evocative. Can you tell us about its significance? What is the meaning behind this chant, and how does it contribute to the atmosphere and intention of your performance?

The chanting in my performance began as a ceremonial song dedicated to the landscape, emphasizing care for the earth and drawing on both Irish and English. By reversing and layering the chant, I aimed to create a sense of mystery, turning it into something cryptic and timeless. This reversal not only adds an evocative layer but also reflects the complex, often hidden connections between language, landscape, and memory. The chant shapes the atmosphere, inviting the audience into a contemplative space where the meaning is sensed rather than fully understood, deepening the emotional impact of the performance.

How would you describe the ceremonial elements within your performance? What rituals or symbolic gestures are involved, and how do they connect to cultural traditions or to the themes of memory, mythology, and the deep evolutionary history of peatlands?

The ceremonial elements in my performance serve as a gateway to the past, allowing me to connect with those who came before. Through these gestures, spread material rich with energy and memories of past life, organic matter that, over time, has transformed and been reborn within the peatlands. This act is both ritualistic and symbolic, acknowledging the deep evolutionary history embedded in peat while honoring the cycles of life, death, and regeneration. By resonating with themes of memory and mythology, I wish to invite the viewer to reflect on our connection to ancestral landscapes and the enduring presence of those who once inhabited them.

Gayil Nalls, Ph.D., is the creator of World Sensorium and founder of the World Sensorium/Conservancy. She explores how plants and humans shape each other’s story.