She Who Speaks
21 Mar - 03 May 2009
SHE WHO SPEAKS
2009-03-21 until 2009-05-03
The point of departure for this exhibition is the story of Hélène Smith, a young Swiss medium who gave celebrated séances for the high society at the end of the 19th century. In 1900 Smith rose to fame with the publication of Théodore Flournoy’s book From India to the Planet Mars. As Professor of Psychology at the University of Geneva, Flournoy documented her various incarnations and experiences of glossolalia (speaking in tongues) as well as her contact and ability to communicate with Martians.
Smith’s first contact with spirits was the ghost of Victor Hugo, one that would last for several years. Through Smith, Hugo would recite poems to a much-delighted audience. When Flournoy joined her spiritualistic circle, however, Hugo had lost his dominance and slowly Marie Antoinette came to figure as her main spirit. Flournoy called this phase the ‘Royal Cycle’ and there soon followed what Flournoy describes as the ‘Indian-‘, ‘Oriental-‘, ‘Martian-‘ and ‘Ultra Martian Cycles’. During her latter séances she spoke in the so-called language of the inhabitants of Mars. To this day linguists are amazed how consistent and structural her ability to speak ‘Martian’ was during the seven years that the cycle lasted.
In 2000 the American Professor of History Daniel Rosenberg wrote in an article about the relationship between Smith and Flournoy:
"She who speaks and he who writes and interprets. It is a story that has been repeated many times over centuries of confrontation between mystics and their (friendly or unfriendly) interpreters. It is a story of original misrecognition, of speech taken for language."
Balancing on the edge of performing glossolalia himself through his eclectic use of styles and mediums, Högberg's interpretation of the story of Hélène Smith springs primarily from a fascination with recontextualization, hermeneutic circles and media archeology. Högberg juxtaposes the story of Smith with images from cultural history, NASA footage, literature and near-historic events (such as in 2008, Thiruvananthapuram, India, where 50 people went blind after staring into the sun hoping for a solar image of the Virgin Mary). He attempts to come to terms with the concept of circumstantial reading of images and text, especially in situations where reason conquers superstition yet the fiction outlives the facts.
She Who Speaks is the first solo exhibition in the Netherlands of Carl Johan Högberg (1979, Eskilstuna, Sweden). Högberg is based in Amsterdam where he is currently participating in the De Ateliers programme.
2009-03-21 until 2009-05-03
The point of departure for this exhibition is the story of Hélène Smith, a young Swiss medium who gave celebrated séances for the high society at the end of the 19th century. In 1900 Smith rose to fame with the publication of Théodore Flournoy’s book From India to the Planet Mars. As Professor of Psychology at the University of Geneva, Flournoy documented her various incarnations and experiences of glossolalia (speaking in tongues) as well as her contact and ability to communicate with Martians.
Smith’s first contact with spirits was the ghost of Victor Hugo, one that would last for several years. Through Smith, Hugo would recite poems to a much-delighted audience. When Flournoy joined her spiritualistic circle, however, Hugo had lost his dominance and slowly Marie Antoinette came to figure as her main spirit. Flournoy called this phase the ‘Royal Cycle’ and there soon followed what Flournoy describes as the ‘Indian-‘, ‘Oriental-‘, ‘Martian-‘ and ‘Ultra Martian Cycles’. During her latter séances she spoke in the so-called language of the inhabitants of Mars. To this day linguists are amazed how consistent and structural her ability to speak ‘Martian’ was during the seven years that the cycle lasted.
In 2000 the American Professor of History Daniel Rosenberg wrote in an article about the relationship between Smith and Flournoy:
"She who speaks and he who writes and interprets. It is a story that has been repeated many times over centuries of confrontation between mystics and their (friendly or unfriendly) interpreters. It is a story of original misrecognition, of speech taken for language."
Balancing on the edge of performing glossolalia himself through his eclectic use of styles and mediums, Högberg's interpretation of the story of Hélène Smith springs primarily from a fascination with recontextualization, hermeneutic circles and media archeology. Högberg juxtaposes the story of Smith with images from cultural history, NASA footage, literature and near-historic events (such as in 2008, Thiruvananthapuram, India, where 50 people went blind after staring into the sun hoping for a solar image of the Virgin Mary). He attempts to come to terms with the concept of circumstantial reading of images and text, especially in situations where reason conquers superstition yet the fiction outlives the facts.
She Who Speaks is the first solo exhibition in the Netherlands of Carl Johan Högberg (1979, Eskilstuna, Sweden). Högberg is based in Amsterdam where he is currently participating in the De Ateliers programme.