Load-bearing wall

Load-bearing Wall is rooted in a shamanic practice of reading hidden messages within a bottle of pure vodka. It stems from the belief that alcohol, when left in a specific place for a sufficiently long time, absorbs messages from spirits. In this work, I consistently fulfill the ritual by sealing the bottle’s cork with beeswax. Much like honey, wax has been used in many folk rites due to its medicinal and symbolic properties.

Formally, the action involved walling up a bottle of rectified spirit within one of the walls of Gallery S on April 4, 2017. The chosen surface is also a load-bearing structure of the building. The wall serves as a medium where its “load-bearing” capacity incorporates the memory of the site—becoming a key ingredient of the extract. The maceration process continues indefinitely.

We were invited to work on the exhibition Ściana (Wall), realized in collaboration with Elżbieta Jabłońska, curated by Dorota Chilińska. The presentation took place at Gallery S, located at 121 Mickiewicza Street in Toruń. The exhibition was integrated into the unique space of a former Uhlan casino from 1910, which over the years served both military and academic purposes.