Mystery of Screens
(Amulets)
2024
Congregation of three Amulets
Price: On request
The series of amulets work directly on and in the membrane of digital screens. Symbols used in Mediterranean magic (such as apotropaic eyes, or the mano cornuta) are burned into the plasma and OLED pixels, exposing their sensitivity to deterioration, and producing a talisman carved out of, or into, a technological device.
Each screen is embedded in a niche carved out of a different material, namely a piece of limestone, a metal discarded ventilation system and a wood panel coming from a church’s kneeling bench. Each of these materials represent locations seen as ‘repositories of knoweldge’, respectively a cave, a data center and a church. ‘Inserting’ the screens in such locations acts as a consacration for the amulets, where their magic qualities are amplified.
Amulet
Materials: Carved limestone, Motorola phone, 'Mano cornuta' symbol burning in the screen, Trilobite fossil, depiction of Plato's cave, miniature torch lamp;
Amulet #2
Materials: Part of a ventilation system, Thinkpad laptop, apotropaic eyes burning in the screen, flintstone, Roman fire making tool, depiction of the closest observation point on Google Maps to the Agriport Data center;
Amulet #3
Materials: Part of a church kneeling bench, Panasonic plasma television, SATOR square burning in the screen, 'Protect us' charm, depiction of Notre Dame burning;