i scarcely have the right to use this ghostly verb
the new school, nyc, 2014
between apocalyptic apprehensions, and dreams of deliverance
35mm slide lecture and projection (80 slides / 16 mins), archival pigment prints, pencil on tracing paper, publication with silkscreen cover
we see our stories grow into the stories of others as our personal memories become part of an extensive fabric of events. this has created the perception that historical and geographical distances are no longer insurmountable, and with that, also the illusion that every past is continuously available and malleable. indeed, do we have the right to claim participation in historical events simply by way of having access to them?
in a time marked by a multitude of historical accounts, we struggle with finding our own ways to recognize, understand, and claim our memories. i scarcely have the right to use this ghostly verb, is to reclaim a chance for political action. we want to thread our memories together collectively, yet we do not want them to simply dissolve into ongoing processes that commodify historical trauma. as a response we invite a group of artists who aim to critically engage with a materiality beyond language through which the past is articulated, transmitted and conserved.
- curators ilyn wong, mari alarcón and pieter paul pothoven
