Stillness is Motion

Stillness is Motion

Fred Van de Walle

Stillness is Motion is a video artwork created for Xu Bing’s Space Art Residency and shown on the SCA-1 satellite, which orbits Earth at about 28,000 km/h. The work follows a journey from the deepest ocean trenches—where pressure is immense—to the emptiness of outer space, where pressure drops to zero. As symbolic, imaginary creatures drift upward through these extreme environments, the satellite itself circles the planet at high speed, and, along with Earth, races around the Sun and through the Milky Way. This movement highlights how, even when things appear still, everything is always in motion—mirroring life’s ongoing adaptation and transformation.

At the heart of the project is the phrase:

“I died a 1000 deaths by my own hand. I chase what I can't have, endless pressure to endless space, round we go.”

Each part reflects a key idea about life’s journey:

• “I died a 1000 deaths” refers to the many symbolic stages of adaptation and transformation life undergoes through evolution.
• “by my own hand” means these changes are driven by a need to explore, survive, or seek something better—even taking risks out of curiosity or hope.
• “I chase what I can’t have” captures the restless urge to explore and seek what is out of reach, fueling both progress and frustration.
• “endless pressure to endless space” describes the journey from the ocean’s crushing depths to the vacuum of outer space, and also stands as a metaphor for moving from challenging situations to unknown possibilities.
• “round we go” stands for the ongoing, repeating cycles in nature and the cosmos. It also hints at the possibility that life itself is part of a cosmic cycle: some theories suggest life may have arrived on Earth from space, evolved in the oceans, and could one day return to space—an eternal loop connecting sea and stars.

The video traces a path through all ocean pressure zones, from the deepest trenches to the surface, before reaching the zero pressure of space. As the creatures morph and ascend, they symbolize life’s adaptability across radically different environments.

The video ends by revealing the incredible speeds at which everything is moving: the satellite orbits Earth at 28,000 km/h, Earth orbits the Sun at 107,000 km/h, and our solar system travels around the Milky Way at 828,000 km/h—reminding us that, even in apparent stillness, we are always part of vast, invisible journeys.

Stillness is Motion invites reflection on life’s persistence and our endless search for meaning—perhaps as part of a much larger cosmic cycle.

The perspective behind Stillness is Motion is shaped by years of experience in deep-sea archaeology and heritage conservation. Work with shipwrecks and underwater heritage sites brings a direct awareness of how life and material traces endure and adapt under immense pressure and in darkness. This background provides the foundation for the video’s exploration of adaptation, transformation, and the cycles that connect the ocean’s depths with the vastness of space.