AltErEtt or AltErEgo,
February-March 2014,
an installation, in Evangerista kunst -og kulturhus.
The name
of the artist: Mona Nordaas:
http://www.evangerista.no/hjem
In memoriam: Mona Nordaas (1958-2016)
Evanger, a tiny village in Norway, is home to Norwegian artist Mona Nordaas, who makes colourful installations from materials and objects that have been thrown out as garbage. Putting together things that are damaged, ugly, or no longer modern or useful, she creates art which is both pleasing and intriguing, beautiful and thought-provoking.
This text is a rewrite of
two essays which I wrote about Mona’s work in 2014, as submissions for the
Coursera course "Live!: A History of Art for Artists, Animators and
Gamers".
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| Foto: Mona Nordaas |
At the far end of the café, flimsy curtains on either side of a small stage are pulled open, to reveal AltErEtt, or AltErEgo, the installation on which Mona is currently working. In Norwegian, the names AltErEtt and AltErEgo play on the words of which they are made up, forming a deliberate quadruple meaning: Alter-et means the altar, while alt-er-ett means all is one. Alter ego can also be read as alt-er-ego – all is ego.
The installation stands tall on the small stage, functioning simultaneously as an altar and a representation of a person, bearing within itself countless large and small elements: a Buddha; embellishments and ornaments; a tray holding tiny cups; a harlequin; a marionette; orderly and complex collections of objects, mirrors, lights...
Every surface holds small objects that could fall at the slightest push, just as we present an attractive, but fragile, outer layer, protecting our inner vulnerability. The Buddha sits at the back, centred within a flimsy body with limbs on either side. Near the front, the tray and the tiny cups signal a readiness to serve and share. In front of the Buddha, the harlequin looks out, ready for mischief. A marionette leaps from the top – strings pulled from within or from without?
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| Foto: Mona Nordaas |
Bathing in the gentle hustle and bustle of the café, I reflect... Do we view all existence as one? Do we see all as part of our-selves? Are these views mutually exclusive? If all is one, why are we so wasteful? Ultimately, do we choose who and what we are? It is interesting to consider this work as an allegory of contemporary times, as it has so many layers, possible interpretations, and points of entry.
In the simple act of reusing throw-away objects, the work has an intended meaning in the form of an overt political message about waste and materialism; an undisguised critique of the pervasive throw-away culture of overconsumerism in which we all take part. On other levels this work acts as an allegory of contemporary times in the way it reveals hidden meanings related to life, identity and human complexity; it can be seen down-up or up-down, and we can approach it from many different angles.
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| Foto: Mona Nordaas |
On a superficial level,
like AltErEtt or AltErEgo, each one of us makes up
a whole, appearing as a more or less coherent entity. Yet, in the deeper layers
of our being, we are made up of distinct, yet indivisible, yet contradictory
elements; we are simultaneously selfish and selfless, good and bad, constructive
and destructive. Each of us embodies femininity and masculinity, optimism and
pessimism, harmony and disharmony. AltErEtt or AltErEgo can
be seen as a beautiful and expressive manifestation of the many facets of human
nature; even elements that are unattractive, perhaps even ugly, contribute to
the beauty of the finished work.
In particular, though, AltErEtt or AltErEgo reminds
us of our mortality. Like the discarded artefacts that make up the work - and
like the work created from these artefacts - each one of us will one day cease
to be an entity, and all that we once were will fall apart. If we are unable to
stop waste and over-consumption, even the beautiful and vulnerable world which
we now inhabit may one day be only a memory - to be remembered by whom?
AltErEtt/AltErEgo is
quite a large installation; the combination of a very small child and an extremely
complex, flimsy and breakable construction is not to be recommended -
thankfully, on this particular occasion disaster was avoided... :)
