Whitney Biennial 2024: Even Better Than the Real Thing

Film

Born 1993 in Anár, Sápmi
Lives in Anár, Sápmi

In 100 Vuogi Dadjat Mii x Orrunsádji ASMR Edition, Sámi artist Sunna Nousuniemi creates an audiovisual space of radical self-care, intended to act as a respite from colonialist and capitalist forces. In keeping with ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) videos—which, like this one, are broadly disseminated on YouTube—Nousuniemi’s work uses low, whispery sounds that many listeners experience as creating a sense of relaxation and well-being. Throughout the video, the artist strokes a number of duodji (traditional Sámi handicrafts), including a liidni (silk scarf), a leather pouch decorated with beads, a red and yellow báddi (woven ribbon), and a goikket, a winter boot made of reindeer fur. Nousuniemi also periodically whispers in Sámi, holding space for the listener to have an experience of pure rest, outside of colonialist rules or concepts of time.