Daniel Hellmann

Art, Science and Technology

Interested in the complex relationship between humans and other animals and the implications on the environment, Daniel Hellmann has created, in 2018, a queer, vegan alter ego: Soya the Cow. This ongoing performance, music, and activism project questions the Swiss cow mythology and anthropocentric self-image in a playful and direct way. During his residency in Brazil, he intends to transfer his interests into a different cultural context, following the ecological and economic cycles. He proposes to research the connection between Switzerland (a country that imports soybeans) and Brazil (a major producer), the entanglement and the interconnectedness of global food supply chains, cattle-driven deforestation, and its impact on the environment and the climate. After getting in touch with local producers and activists, his aim is to create an incomplete but multi-layered collection of stories that takes soy and cows as a starting point for a deeper reflection on the interconnectedness of all lifeforms in this eclectic, more-than-human world.

Daniel Hellmann [CH] is a singer, performer, dance, and theatre maker. Daniel sees his artistic practice as a form of intersectional activism. His projects explore the body, bodily relationships and desire and question social norms and power relations in the fields of sexuality, human and animal rights. As part of his interactive performance «Full Service» (2014), the artist has executed hundreds of services worldwide for a corresponding negotiated fee. Since 2017, his work has increasingly focused on the relationships between humans and other animals. The music theatre performance «Requiem for a Piece of Meat» (2017) was awarded the June Johnson Dance Prize and invited to the Swiss Dance Days 2019. With his alter ego «Soya the Cow» – a sex-positive, feminist, vegan drag cow – he has created the one-cow show «Dear Human Animals» (2020), released the music album «Purple Grass» (2021) and several music videos.