Ἰδοὺ ὁ ἄνθρωπος; Ecce homo or Behold the Man (stories of hubris in a godless world) is a body of work, which is taking as a starting point the humanitarian crisis in Europe and the war in Syria, in order to discuss the idea of borders both as physical and existential barriers. We tend to understand the concept of a border as a concrete and definite idea, almost as an archetype that precedes its essence. But is it really that way or is it more of a human construct created in order to serve certain interests? This body of work consists of four videos, a wall installation and a sculpture that act as meditations on the concept of borders and containment. The work intends to challenge the border’s validity of existence while discussing the limits of humanity and cruelty, in a reality where the construct of god should be considered as failed.
We are getting too close, we need boundaries(2020), is a concrete wall dividing a small rectangular space into two smaller but not equal rectangles. Concrete bricks casted out of plastic containers are stacked on top of each other. The purpose of this wall becomes unclear when one considers its height, its stability, and its placement. This divide only appears stable, yet there is a major absence that challenges its purpose. There is no substance to glue the elements together.
Should a child own guns? (2020) is a wall installation with the drawings from the video (stay) in line along with information about how much money each country has earned from selling guns and how much they have spent in helping the refugees and the displaced people they themselves created. The numbers used are based on the information that is public but it is only an estimate since the majority of gun deals has not been made public by most governments.
Intro: Soundtrack of a world in denial
Video, found footage
is a video where real footage from refugee’s protesting in Greece is edited, in order to discuss human’s capacity for empathy and justice. The video is in itself a division between sound and visual.
Chapter 1: (stay) in the lines
Video
depicts a child coloring in countries that were involved in the gun trade during the war in Syria.
Chapter 2: I could tame the sea if I wanted to!
Video performance, barb wire
is a performance of a person trying to build a sand wall by the seashore, inspired by the greek government’s idea to build a wall in the sea. The video also discusses the role of Christianity in western institutions and governments.
Chapter 3: When contained I react/ combustion
Video, water beads, Tupperware
video of water beads overflowing
The three chapters act as abstractions or metaphorical visualizations of the concept of borders. They belong to the metaphorical realm when the video on the opposite side belongs in the realm of reality. Although aesthetically the videos vary in style, they are all connected by a single element, that is the element of human hubris. In greek mythology hubris is defined as an action that violates the natural order that usually stems from human arrogance.