Ayn Rand Shrugged
altered book. mixed media
18.00 x 11.00 cm / 7.09 x 4.33 in
2022
In Ayn Rand Shrugged (2022), Semper vandalizes Rand’s Atlas, a seminal manual on objectivism. Recalling the Greek mythological figure who carried the celestial globe as punishment for waging war against Zeus, the artist’s alterations call attention to his denouncement of a world of self-interest where altruism is deemed destructive. In his own words, “It’s now time to create and recreate, a time to re-enchant.”
And so, the call to create, recreate, and re-enchant becomes a collective summon. In the religion of theosophy and the philosophical school of anthroposophy, there is a metaphysical library called the Akashic Records, a stupendous compendium of all universal events, thoughts, words, emotions, and intent that have ever happened in the past, present, or future in terms of all entities and life forms, not just humans. As we keep the legacy of books, we carry their creators; intentions with ours throughout time: their call for freedom, or some universal principle becomes ours. Indeed, when we invoke enchantment in the realms of literature or art, we might discover its limitless potentials. Magic, in all of its ruminations, alterations, and contemporary interpretations, remains an important counter-cultural force and liberative strategy: enchantment becomes a weapon against self-interest or a systemic, conditioned forgetting. Looking forward to the future, if you want to read a book that hasn’t yet been written, you must be the one to write it.
The Library of the Forgotten Future is on view until November 15, 2022 at Galleria Duemila. For appointments and inquiries, email us through art@galleriaduemila.com
