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Nkisi N'Kondi is a Congo phrase for a power figure, the African name for
sculptural artworks westerners
call " nail fetishes". These generally are small statues of human form,
containing a spiritual energy bundle secreted in a
cavity or container in the statue. The energy is activated when the wooden
statue is ritually pierced by a nail or other
sharp object.
Prior to the LAW sculpture in 1994, I was making objects from books. I
began by burning, chopping, soaking, piercing,
chaining and binding law books, history books, dictionaries, encyclopedias
and scientific reference books to transform
them beyond their mundane existence. Like their African namesakes, the
books incorporate the energy into their altered
form and now have meanings beyond their original state.
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Shaman's Charm made from Deer Skull, Teeth, Tusks, Shells, and
Beads. Culture Unknown, Borneo Island,
Indonesia. 19th to 20th century.
H-11"
This example of a fetish charm similarly offers a relay for a design using available materials relevant to a wide image. For the relay you would not literally make the charm but treat the website as a means to agglomerate the materials relevant to the textures of the wide image. |
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