Instead of my world, there would soon be only ice, snow, stillness, death; no more violence, no war, no victims; nothing but frozen silence, absence of life. The ultimate achievement of mankind would be, not just self-destruction, but the destruction of all life; the transformation of the living world into a dead planet.
― Anna Kavan, Ice
Ecdysis is an ongoing collaboration between rapper and producer Iceboy Violet and artist and scenographer Ella Skinner. Presented in Vilnius for its second edition, the performance is based on the controversial British writer Anna Kavan’s 1967 novel Ice, set within an apocalyptic world consumed by a monolithic ice shelf following nuclear war. The advancing ice also serves as an extended metaphor for Kavan’s lifelong heroin addiction.
Showcasing a music performance staged within a block of ice, Ecdysis explores obsession, addiction and mass extinction.
Ella Skinner is a Welsh artist, director and scenographer based in London. Working across film, live performance and spatial design, she creates immersive visual worlds that engage all the senses. Her transgressive and theatrical practice breaks down boundaries between artistic disciplines seeking to move beyond language and social structures to engage with the visceral and primal.
Her work has been presented internationally, including at the Contemporary Art Centre (CAC) in Vilnius, Reimagine Europe, AUDRA Festival, Rupert and Kaunas Artists’ House. She has also worked with artists including the seminal composer Philip Glass.
Emerging from Manchester’s underground music scene, Iceboy Violet has become one of the most distinctive voices in UK experimental rap. Their raw lyricism and uncompromising delivery channel both vulnerability and rage, carried by productions that fuse grime, noise, and club music. Over the past few years, they have carved out a singular path with acclaimed releases such as The Vanity Project and Not a Dream But a Controlled Explosion (Hyperdub, 2024). Collaborations with artists including Blackhaine and Nueen have placed them at the heart of a nouvelle vague of edging Northern England talents. As both a performer and producer, Iceboy Violet embodies the restless energy of a generation reshaping what rap and electronic music can sound like.
Performance credits:
Directed by Ella Skinner & Iceboy Violet
Performed by Iceboy Violet
Set design and art direction: Ella Skinner
Sound design: 96 Back
Ice: Ledo Meistrai
Main image credit: Gražvydas Jovaiša