Exhibition
14 November 2024–11 January 2025
Five consecutive dreams, five suns, and a garden
by Charbel-joseph H. Boutros
Grey Noise
On a summer day, a foreign daily worker, a mason, is hired for one day's work.
In lieu of his daily labor, which entails constructing concrete structures, he is offered a day of rest in an orchard garden belonging to the artist, situated in the Lebanese mountains.
He is simply requested to enjoy his time in the garden, alone, liberated from labor, with the freedom to engage in any activity he chooses during the designated working hours and to consume the fruits he desires from the existing trees.
Lunch is provided, along with water, and a portable charger for his cell phone.
He is encouraged to take a nap after lunch.
He is given a white bed sheet to cover himself during his nap and to protect himself from the sun.
At the end of the day, after being remunerated, he returns the white bed sheet to the artist.
The dreams and hopes impregnated in the white bed sheet are then covered with a fluid mixture of cement, water from a local source, and ashes from the news of that day.
The same experience is repeated five consecutive working days with five different workers.