Ces Nuits qui s’allongent

Those nights that grow longer

2021

A contemporary interpretation of the Swiss monster tradition where women are claiming their space in history, folklore and public spaces.

The project is an extension to Noemi Castella’s Master Thesis La Fabrique des Monstres on Swiss folklore. The research was on a tradition from The Canton of Valais, the tradition of the Tschäggättä. Before the 1960s, single men wore this costume to go in search of a young woman while frightening anyone who crossed their path. They would enter in their houses, grab a victim and cover her face with soot. These simulations of violent behaviors have been transmitted for generations under the guise of tradition. Today even though they are allowed to participate to this celebration, women usually don’t. She tried to understand why, and she imagined that it’s because the traditional costume is designed for a male body and they might not want to wear a costume that represents an assailant for them. In answer to that her idea was to suggest a new interpretation of the costume, designed for the female body, as a tool of empowerment.

Using different techniques, Noemi created new monsters and wrote a new mythology for a tradition that tells the story of these women who took the power back after being victims for years. Creating a new female monster means shaking up the tradition, reversing the gender roles. The parade of these monsters is a testimony of emancipation. But also, it’s an act of taking back space in their environment, the public space and their village where it was dangerous to go out at night, which is still an actual problem. It’s a folkloric intervention to create a space in Swiss folklore for putting women’s work and crafts under the spotlight.This appropriation tries to make the tradition evolve towards a more inclusive festival that is not disparaging to anyone and an attempt to put women and men on an equal footing for the duration of a Carnival parade.