secret agency

The Bank of Burning Money, the Alibi Agency, the Casino of Tricks, the Assembly of Real and Other Pirates, the Black Bank, Women of the Seven Seas – secret agency produces situations and institutions that appear to be fictional but then nonetheless withstand the test of reality. The performances of secret agency create another reality rather than confirming the old world in critical gestures. They open escape routes from austerity and take you on a trip with the improbability drive. secret agency creates forums for unheard voices and explores the pleasures of future togetherness. secret agency is working anonymously, transdisciplinarily and internationally. It was founded to use artistic means and resources beyond the accumulation of individual fame. secret agency is an independent label, an open collective and a practical exercise in the „art of being many“.

Shefarers of Ipswich, 2023

The maritime world is a man’s world – at least until now! Things are changing and today more women than ever are sailing the seas. In order to celebrate women working on, at and with the seas, secret agency founded the Women of the Seven Seas in 2020, asking: Is there a feminism of the seas?

In 2023, the Women of the Seven Seas called out to the Shefarers of Ipswich: Female sailors, women working at the port or on ships, swimmers, environmental activists, female boat builders, women living on boats, and so on, inviting them to all join forces, share their stories and dream of a better future on and for the seas.

During SPILL festival, secret agency set up headquaters for the Shefarers of Ipswich on Barge Victoria on the water front, hosting a series of events: the Open Ship, where stories of shefarers were presented, some from far away, and some from nearby, and the Shefarers' banquet and procession to the Hold, where the Shefarers of Ipswich became part of the Suffolk Archives, as a promise for the future!

Materials

Shefarers of Ipswich - Tide Calendar (PDF)