As part of the Academy of Rhythmorphology’s program at Oslo Fjord in September 2023, Robel Temesgen, in collaboration with Margrethe Pettersen, participated in a durational collective engagement designed to attune bodies to the rhythms of place and transformation. Held in the elevated part of the park near Bekkelaget Renseanlegg, the session invited participants into a transitional ritual of deep listening, storytelling, and cleansing through the burning and consumption of local herbs. A symbolic gift—a piece of polypore fungus—was offered to each participant to hold, smell, and burn, anchoring the experience in sensory and ancestral knowledge.

The bonfire gathering, accompanied by herbal tea, served as a preparatory passage before entering the mountain’s interior, where bacterial processes transform waste into water. This collaboration foregrounded embodied knowledge and ecological awareness, aligning with the Academy’s ethos of rhythm-based inquiry and site-responsive practice.