A3 Refereed book chapter or chapter in a compilation book

Yellowcake: A Performative (An)Archaeology of Uranium




AuthorsMarila, Marko Mikael; Andreoletti, Tea

EditorsA. Nativ & G. Lucas

Publication year2025

Book title Shadow Archaeologies: In the Shadow of Antiquity or For Other Modes of Archaeological Worldmaking

Series titleArchaeological Orientations

First page 164

Last page182

ISBN978-1-032-64447-9

eISBN978-1-032-64444-8


Abstract

Tea Andreoletti’s participatory performance YELLOWCAKE collectively evokes the memories of a 1970s anti-uranium mining movement in the Alta Valle Seriana, the valley of the artist’s hometown in northern Italy. The performance reflects on resource exploitation and forms of resistance through the preparation of a communal feast featuring polenta, a traditional dish from northern Italy that resembles uranium yellow cake. In 2023, Marko Marila and Tea Andreoletti collaborated for an instalment of YELLOWCAKE at the ANTI Contemporary Art Festival in Kuopio, Finland. The collaboration fostered multi-layered discussions, incorporating diverse perspectives, historical contexts, and interpretations. This conversation article reflects on how, through a combination of artistic and (an)archaeological practice, the memories of anti-uranium mining activism in Italy and Finland were collectively explored in the context of a contemporary art festival.



Last updated on 2025-06-08 at 13:31