Out of sight, out of mind

Solo exhibition at Balcony Gallery (March-May 2020)

Photo credits: João Neves

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Out of Sight, Out of mind researches locations that, for one reason or another, are difficult or impossible to reach. This inaccessibility is caused either by their topographic or geographic characteristics, their distance from inhabited areas, or political or spiritual reasons. Or simply because humans don’t have the right means to get there. What is remarkable about these places is that, if you find a way of getting there, you most likely won’t find anyone else. They are the ultimate escapist destination. They represent the child-like idea that there is a place that is free from any problems, where one could run away to: out of sight, out of mind. On the other hand, even in these ‘problem-free’ areas, one can find evidence of the problems one might be running away from: the water in Point Nemo, a point in the Pacific Ocean that is the most isolated place on earth, has 26 microplastic particles per cubic meter. It is from this dichotomy that the work in this show unfolds, referencing these locations that are external and far away from the gallery space and coming back to the gallery space itself, exploring its accessibility and habitability and creating new possibilities and narratives with what lies within it. We know these places exist, we have access to their exact coordinates, but most likely will never go there during our lifetimes or know anyone that will. For that reason, they carry in them a quasi-fictional quality that opens up space for debate around the reason for these extreme, impracticable and morally dubious journeys.

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