Andromeda and The Milky Way

2019, performance with charcoal, still images from HD video, 5 hours 41 minutes. Performers: Emma Fielden and Lizzie Thomson. Videographer: Emma Fielden.

Coalescence is a process by which elements merge to become a single whole. We see this happening in the world around us from the largest to the smallest of scales: the coalescence of celestial objects, of bodies of water, of fire, of bubbles, of atoms. In fact, right now we are part of a grand coalescence, as our Milky Way and the Andromeda galaxies are drawn together at a rate of 402,000 kilometres per hour, predicted to merge in about 4 billion years. Strangely enough, when the two galaxies collide, the probability of any two stars or planets colliding is almost nil. Closer to our daily experience, we might reflect upon coalescence in terms of our deep human desire for connection.