A 2m x 1m room decorated with patterns from floor to ceiling using u.v security markers. A small, laser-cut tetrahedron and touch light were fixed to the ceiling to light the space enough for safety, but the space could only truly be seen with the use of u.v torches which hung outside the entrance.
Inspiration and Purpose
I had been reading Valley of the Painted Caves by Jean M Auel in which the main character explores an undiscovered cave with artwork significant to the Zelandoni, a group of prehistoric priests to which she belonged. I had been researching and using ancient, alternative and unconventional forms of writing for a while, predominantly binary, morse code, shorthand and Egyptian Hieratic signs further informed by the Nazca Lines and cave paintings of prehistoric people, and have often imagined the awe and desire to understand that must have accompanied their discoveries. This feeling of finding something almost shocking in its sudden appearance and form was the purpose of this piece and what I attempted to replicate.
When entering the viewer would take a torch hanging outside the space, entering into a dimly lit area with seemingly blank walls. Once the torch was turned on the artwork was revealed in the way it would have been to the discoverers once they ignited their light sources.
