&sous.les.montagnes

BOOKLET English Translation

& under.the.mountains
stones, silences, whispers

in echo of the performance of &under.the.mountains
geneva, 2026

essay text - timon

But what – or whom – do the mountains hold?

In times of rearmament it is worth taking a closer look at the urban legend of Swiss neutrality. Tradition refers not only to the passing down of behaviours and customs, but also to that of ideas and values. In a bourgeois conception of the Swiss nation-state, the country is widely praised as neutral far beyond its borders.

Who is the state? C’est qui l'état?

‘Fatherland’ is a moral concept; it is often confused with a specific territory, which in turn is merely a piece of nature. ‘In order to defend our independence – our greatest national asset – we had to be prepared to relinquish parts of our country, albeit not without a fight. By choosing not to defend everything in order to defend ourselves for the long term, we exchanged space for time, which is far more significant in the life of a nation than its physical territory.’ 

Who is neutrality? C’est qui la neutralité?

These are the words of Samuel Gonard in his 1959 retrospective. Gonard was head of Henri Guisan’s personal staff during the Second World War. He was therefore at the forefront of the so-called ‘Réduit’, the Swiss Army’s strategic plan in the event of an invasion by Nazi Germany. This is a detail highlighted by Erich Keller in „Gegen die Zivilbevölkerung“: three-quarters of the Swiss population lived in the area that was to be sacrificed to gain time.

It seems that, at least in times of crisis, the state is not to be understood as synonymous with its population. I, for one, long believed that the Réduit-plan contained provisions for the rescue of all ‘Swiss people’. Quite the contrary: if necessary, the military would have even been required to ‘sacrifice its own’ in order to uphold the plan.

Kinda wild if you ask me...

A few years before these discussions, on the 9st of November 1932, a massacre took place just a few streets away from what is now the Quai Henri Guisan and the ADC Pavilion in Geneva. Buried beneath mountains of folklore about neutrality and fraternal union lies a dark chapter of Swiss history. On that day, antifascists gathered to protest against a provocative, fascist rally chaired by the far-right extremist Georges Oltramare. Acting on official orders, the Swiss Army opened fire on the protesters, wounding 65 and killing 13.

Who is neutrality? C’est qui la neutralité?

Clearly, this glorified notion of neutrality historically does not even hold true within the country’s own borders. The term appears to be a tool used to push through hegemonic rhetoric and policies, whilst idealising them in popular discourse. A country that, under pressure from the right, uses ‘its own people’ as cannon fodder can, at best, claim a lack of backbone as a tradition to fly on its banner.

These examples may date back some time, but the history, hidden beneath the mountains, is in fact considerably older:

The Matterhorn, for example – part of what was then the Réduit and now a symbol of the nation – traces its origins back some 40 million years. That was when the great collision between the continents of Eurasia and Africa took place. In a slow process, the mountain range rose whilst simultaneously being eroded by gravity, water and glacial ice. 

Erosion has revealed the Matterhorn in its present form. The mountain is therefore an erosional relic of the African-Adriatic Plate.

SHE IS AFRICAN.

The mountains we walk upon hold history. Partly visible due to weathering, partly as bunkers that have been converted into server farms, and partly still forgotten to this day.

We dig, we remember.

To remember is to resist – from Geneva to Hanau to Gaza.

- timon nils essoungou bony malong, 20.09.26

introductory text - sami

coucou,

this brochure accompanies the creation of my piece &under.the.mountains, which i am developing with a wonderful team. the brochure was conceived and created in collaboration with thulú barbarán.

for some time now, I have been questioning the issues surrounding the history of switzerland and its traditions, and many questions remain open. these questions have been explored further in the piece through the body and nourished by the entire team.

this brochure is intended as an extension of these questions and an invitation to continue reflecting on them together. also, to remind ourselves of hidden stories, to dig deeper into them and to try to unsettle what seems fixed.

the discussions and encounters with the team, other artists, friends and my family have deeply nourished me. in this spirit, i wanted to bring together here the contributions of artists whose perspectives, thoughts and sensibilities around switzerland i particularly admire. this is why the brochure brings together a poem by thulú, an essay-text by timon, photographs by mahmoud and my map.

there are many books, podcasts and films that have taught me a lot and given rise to reflections and bodily practices. i absorb this information with great interest, and then, in my head, thoughts whistle, fly, overlap and confront one another.

alongside the map on the back of this brochure. i have tried to put a small part of all this disorder in my head onto paper.

here you will find, on the one hand, stories of switzerland's colonial past and imperialist present, often hidden behind pretty images of mountains, and, on the other, stories and relationships surrounding some of the instruments used in the piece and traditional swiss music. the map is inspired and guided by moses märz's mapmaking practice. it is intended to be neither exhaustive nor scientific. it is part of an artistic process, of a desire to try to weave connections and of an interest in history.

there are many authors, artists and researchers who have dedicated their time to telling other stories of switzerland and bringing their own unique perspectives. these stories and works have inspired the map and the bibliography that accompanies it. you can discover them by scanning the qr code - I highly recommend them.

kisses, thank you!

:))

sami

short bios

mahmoud khattab

mahmoud is a photographer and writer based out of cairo and currently in bern. mahmoud’s work spans years of observing change and reminiscence of hills and himself in stills and writings.

timon nils essoungou bony malong 

timon is an organic farmer in training and an artist. he works with people, animals, plants, sounds and text.

sami lea samira bernath

sami is a dancer and choreographer based between bern and geneva. she is working with her body and rhythm, with things she wants to remember, searching in the in-between and underneath. 

thulú barbarán

thulú is a writer and cultural worker, a peruvian poet living between geneva and lausanne. they write about everyday gestures, the waves of nature and urban life, the body moving through time, and the raspy longings and sweet joys caressing lesbian existences. 

gabriela luchetta

gabriela’s work lies at the intersection of design and art, through installation, sound, and graphic design. originally from são paulo, she came to geneva to complete her studies. she is interested in memory, migration, and queer temporalities.

editorial infos 

TEXTES

timon nils essoungou bony malong 

sami lea samira bernath

thulú barbarán 

IMAGES

mahmoud khattab

pauli teuscher

EDITORIAL TEAM AND ENGLISH, FRENCH AND GERMAN TRANSLATION

sami lea samira bernath

thulú barbarán 

GRAPHIC DESIGN

gabriela luchetta 

thank you for the conversations and support that contributed to the making of this brochure. thank you to vita, joana, ghalas, and léa <3

performance details & credits

in resonance with the piece &under.the.mountains, created as part of the emergentia festival  — a showcase dedicated to emerging choreographic work, organised by l’abri, le tu and pavillon adc

dance, concept and choreography: sami lea samira bernath
dramaturgy: thulú barbarán, emma saba
artistic collaboration and assistance: emma saba
booklet and texts collaboration: thulú barbarán
sound creation: lisa brudermann
artistic and sound collaboration: lu läderach
scenography: antonie oberson
costume design: arsen aeby
lighting design: alessandra domingues
outside eye and artistic support: baptiste cazaux
outside eyes: bryan campbell, léa katharina meyer
care coordinator: ramona unterberg
production, distribution and administration: le voisin productions