Collective Imaginary, 2020 - ongoing
Collective Imaginary exists in flux. The image evolves below the threshold of short-term memory, yet perceptible to other regimes of mnemonic perception, particularly as the viewer moves through the exhibition space.
Composed of several thousand images of a chosen idea the work presents itself as the arithmetic mean of these images, revealing only their global appearance: a palette of colours, an atmosphere. Unlike the conventional regime of the image, it is a midpoint between all existing viewpoints, yet the cartography of a dominant imaginary.
The database is destined to evolve indefinitely, throughout the duration of its exhibition and between presentations — at the pace of the continuous accumulation of images shared by humans across the internet, books, or social media. No artificial intelligence model intervenes to restore meaning: the database becomes sensible in itself, offering the contemplation of a raw mathematical process — a drift from calculation toward sensation, without interpretive mediation.
Collective Imaginary is an inquiry into objectivity. It embodies a median point shared by many observers, yet inhabited by none — a view from nowhere.
Castagniccia, 2023, ink and varnish on canvas mounted on panel, NFC chip, 15,7 x 15,2 cm
Yosemite, 2026, Perpetually evolving digital image, algorithmic averaging software, continuously enriched database, dimensions variable
Socotra, 2023, ink and varnish on canvas mounted on aluminum, NFC chip, 30 x 24 cm
English countryside, 2022, varnished pigment ink on canvas, oakwood and single-component polyurethane foam, 35 x 32 x 8 cm
Yosemite, 2022, varnished pigment ink on canvas, oakwood and single-component polyurethane foam, 38 x 38 x 9 cm
Vallée de Joux, 2022, varnished pigment ink on canvas, oakwood and single-component polyurethane foam, 34 x 30 x 7 cm