Thresholds, 60th Venice Biennal, German Pavillon : 20 April, 2024 - 24 November, 2024
(2024)- Abstract
- Under the title THRESHOLDS, the contribution to the German Pavilion 2024 narrates history and the future from various artistic positions. The artistic contribution approaches thresholds, steps, and boundaries.
Participated with the work Light To The Nations, 2022-2024:
In an act of salvation, the generation ship Light To The Nations carries humans toward new galaxies and planets. Named after a passage in the Book of Isaiah calling for leadership, the generation ship serves humanity in the face of the man-made environmental and political destruction of Planet Earth. The dimensions of the ship allow... (More) - Under the title THRESHOLDS, the contribution to the German Pavilion 2024 narrates history and the future from various artistic positions. The artistic contribution approaches thresholds, steps, and boundaries.
Participated with the work Light To The Nations, 2022-2024:
In an act of salvation, the generation ship Light To The Nations carries humans toward new galaxies and planets. Named after a passage in the Book of Isaiah calling for leadership, the generation ship serves humanity in the face of the man-made environmental and political destruction of Planet Earth. The dimensions of the ship allow for controlled population growth, ensuring the survival of future generations. This grand, open-ended journey will continue for eons, encapsulating utopian and dystopian elements in equal measures.
The ship’s creator, Yael Bartana, works within the framework of Jewish mysticism, the Kabbalah. She superimposes the Sephirot diagram, the main image of Kabbalah, on the spaceship structure. The ten Sephirot transform into the ship’s spheres, designed as clusters for various functions including ship headquarters, space research, engineering, medical center, learning centers, agriculture, heritage, public sphere, living quarters, and recycling. The Sephirot contain all facets of God, symbolizing the idea of God as Ain Sof—an eternity that equals the endless outer space of the generation ship’s journey.
Overlaying imagined technologies with mystical doctrine, Bartana utilizes the ship as a vehicle of redemption, analogous to the Merkava, the Kabbalistic carriage that brings the mystic close to the throne of God. The spaceship’s journey toward a utopian ideal relates to the core messianic promise of a better future and to a further Kabbalistic concept: that of Tikkun Olam, the mending of the world. Without humans present to destroy it, Earth can recover, and without the restrictions of the land, new forms of societies can be designed on the ship.
While Light To The Nations is based on Jewish traditions, the grand endeavor transcends religious, ethnic, national, state, and tribal boundaries. It offers a future to all humanity while acknowledging a certain hubris inherent in its biblical reference. The spaceship navigates beyond traditional notions of space, land, and human connection to the Earth, defying the gravitational pull and the human quest for belonging. It serves as a symbol of redemption and a physical embodiment of new societal structures, redefining humanity’s relationship with its terrestrial and territorial origins. As a beacon of hope and innovation, the generation ship operates as a blueprint for the potential construction of further spaceships, inviting humanity to embark on collective journeys while Earth is healing.
(Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/cdbb38bd-8f38-4c75-9d16-5520b69c87a4
- artist
- Bartana, Yael LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2024-04
- type
- Non-textual form
- publication status
- published
- subject
- publisher
- Deutscher Pavillon
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- cdbb38bd-8f38-4c75-9d16-5520b69c87a4
- date added to LUP
- 2024-12-17 10:56:47
- date last changed
- 2025-04-04 14:48:13
@misc{cdbb38bd-8f38-4c75-9d16-5520b69c87a4,
abstract = {{<div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a"><div style="text-align: start;">Under the title <i>THRESHOLDS</i>, the contribution to the German Pavilion 2024 narrates history and the future from various artistic positions. The artistic contribution approaches thresholds, steps, and boundaries.</div></div><br/>Participated with the work <i>Light To The Nations, 2022-2024</i>:<br/><br/>In an act of salvation, the generation ship<i> Light To The Nations</i> carries humans toward new galaxies and planets. Named after a passage in the Book of Isaiah calling for leadership, the generation ship serves humanity in the face of the man-made environmental and political destruction of Planet Earth. The dimensions of the ship allow for controlled population growth, ensuring the survival of future generations. This grand, open-ended journey will continue for eons, encapsulating utopian and dystopian elements in equal measures.<br/><br/>The ship’s creator, Yael Bartana, works within the framework of Jewish mysticism, the Kabbalah. She superimposes the Sephirot diagram, the main image of Kabbalah, on the spaceship structure. The ten Sephirot transform into the ship’s spheres, designed as clusters for various functions including ship headquarters, space research, engineering, medical center, learning centers, agriculture, heritage, public sphere, living quarters, and recycling. The Sephirot contain all facets of God, symbolizing the idea of God as Ain Sof—an eternity that equals the endless outer space of the generation ship’s journey.<br/><br/>Overlaying imagined technologies with mystical doctrine, Bartana utilizes the ship as a vehicle of redemption, analogous to the Merkava, the Kabbalistic carriage that brings the mystic close to the throne of God. The spaceship’s journey toward a utopian ideal relates to the core messianic promise of a better future and to a further Kabbalistic concept: that of Tikkun Olam, the mending of the world. Without humans present to destroy it, Earth can recover, and without the restrictions of the land, new forms of societies can be designed on the ship.<br/><br/>While <i>Light To The Nations</i> is based on Jewish traditions, the grand endeavor transcends religious, ethnic, national, state, and tribal boundaries. It offers a future to all humanity while acknowledging a certain hubris inherent in its biblical reference. The spaceship navigates beyond traditional notions of space, land, and human connection to the Earth, defying the gravitational pull and the human quest for belonging. It serves as a symbol of redemption and a physical embodiment of new societal structures, redefining humanity’s relationship with its terrestrial and territorial origins. As a beacon of hope and innovation, the generation ship operates as a blueprint for the potential construction of further spaceships, inviting humanity to embark on collective journeys while Earth is healing.<br/><br/><br/>}},
author = {{Bartana, Yael}},
language = {{eng}},
publisher = {{Deutscher Pavillon}},
title = {{Thresholds, 60th Venice Biennal, German Pavillon : 20 April, 2024 - 24 November, 2024}},
year = {{2024}},
}