Camille Turner, 80 Died of Flux and Flu, 2026. Durational performance, installation & video. Filmed and edited by Kate Geis and composed by Ravi Naimpally.

80 Died of Flux and Flu

80 Died of Flux and Flu (2026) is a media/performance work by Camille Turner that takes its name from an eighteenth century letter from the representative of James Roger, the owner of the Sarah, a slave ship constructed in Newfoundland, Canada. 

The letter describes that the Sarah travelled from West Africa, stopping in Barbados before landing in Jamaica. 142 enslaved people in its cargo hold were sold, but 80 others died en route. The money generated by the sale of these trafficked people is estimated at about 8,000 pounds, which would translate to 1.6 million pounds today - over 2 million dollars. 

Delivered almost as an aside, the letter describes “having buried 80 slaves with the flux and fever”. These 80 people, who remained nameless in the records, were written off as a financial loss. This is the brutal arithmetic of enslavement. Their bodies would have been unceremoniously thrown overboard. 

In response to this violence endured Camille created ‘80 Died of Flux and Flu’. In this work, Camille washes 80 individual stones and wraps them each in white linen. This washing and wrapping remembers and honours the lives of the 80 people who were written off in the inventory of the ship. Camille tends to each stone individually, an act of acknowledgment and care. This durational performance was witnessed by two guests, Elana Casey and Farihah Shah as well as the video crew.

A media/performance project by Camille Turner, 2026
Commissioned by Slavery North

Filmed & Edited by Kate Geis
Composed by Ravi Naimpally
Grip/Lighting: Bryn Francis
Makeup: Liz Washer
Performer:  Camille Turner
Witnesses: Elana Casey and Farihah Shah