eternal return / op.2 übermenschen

—-Description of the work——

‘eternal return’ conveys a immortal message to mankind to provoke a sense of obligation for the time being.

The artwork has been articulated in a short film based on the actual installation artwork created by Acci Baba. The caption is cited from Friedrich Nietzsche’s ‘Thus Spoke Zarathustra”, where Zarathustra speaks out the context of ‘superman’. In the film, the verse is spoken by an ape inside a TV represented as an artificial intelligence derived from our technological development.

The artwork was realized using an abandoned cathode ray tube TV found on street. By refurbishing, the rubbish returned its life to be used as another purpose. The ape has been displayed in the TV using 3D animation technique, allowing it to speak out verses freely. The artwork plots a question through an ape to indicate our accelerating materialism in our system without the true means of continuum. In order to provide a multidimensional perspective, the artwork metaphorically expresses corresponding elements such as; material and spirit, past and future, beginning and end, devolution and evolution.

The ape is often used as a common icon to resemble our beliefs and intelligence. Hanuman from the ancient India, Sarutahiko from old Shintoism, symbol of Three Wise Monkeys from ancient civilizations. In the Kubrick’s ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ the ape discovers the usage of tools underlying the birth of our technological era. First ever primate to be out into space was a monkey to investigate the biological effects of space travel. The artwork pays homage toward historically used symbolism and confronts today’s subjects through Nietzsche’s philosophical concepts.

‘eternal return’ gives a moment to think over our behavior and the system that amplifies the endless ego. It concludes its purpose by creating ironic connections between artificial intelligence and the viewer, questioning the zeitgeist in these times of rapidly shifting paradigms.