Babel

kinetic Installation 2016; Wood, electronic and mechanical elements

Eröffnung: 

Saturday, 24. September 2016 - 14:30

Laufzeit: 

24/09/2016 to 18/11/2016
© Korinna Lindinger und Julia Rosenberger

It’s falling, it’s not falling, it’s falling, it’s not falling…

The swaying tower of Babel plays with our desire to create and destroy.

Playing with building blocks is a popular diversion. The drive to build them higher and higher, more beautiful, more fragile, is as great as the pleasure in seeing them fall. Between possibility and destruction, the field of emotions is ambivalent—this also applies to structures that go beyond playing.

The babylonian societal structures and the tower of babel are a symbol for societies which strive for more increasing business markets, bigger political exertion of influence, control across resources and, at least, control and manipulation of her own members. In the figurative sense, these societies stack brick for brick on top of each other.

The Cyrus Cylinder (538 BCE), the first written manifesto of human rights, also refers to Babylonian politics. In it Cyrus, the conqueror of Babylonia, criticises Nabonidus’ structures of governance. After the conquest of Babylon and the collapse of the tower, Cyrus sets free the slaves and grants more rights to all groups in Babylon.

 

AutorIn: Korinna Lindinger und Julia Rosenberger, aus dem Kollektiv maschen.

ÜbersetzerIn: 

Kate Howlett-Jones
  • Foto: Alexandra Gschiel, © esc medien kunst labor