Cthonos/Oceanus

I am the eggman. They are the eggmen. I am the walrus.
John Lennon

A time-based art for two. Create two large luminous "eggs" from translucent styrofoam (about 8' high, 4' diam. at the widest), put an amber light inside, provide a human-sized entrance on the back and a small visor on the front. The eggs should be installed in a public space that encourages interaction, such as a cafe or other "hang" space, allowing easy access for those wishing to continue exploration. Two participants (acquainted or not) write an everyday message, a fragment of conversation and display it on the fronts of their respective eggs. To create a message: attach words, stamped into small (1-2" x 3-4") thick metal plates, on the front, in a jagged, fragmented way, clustered near the egg's center, first words higher than the last. For example, "Hey, Trina, haven't seen you around in a while." The spoken words are a coherent sentence, but their fragmentation here points up the autonomous nature of their existence: they perform only as signs, and do not in any configuration convey the infinity without our presumed "self"; the ocean aside the preamble, waiting eternally.

The two participants, after displaying their messages, enter the eggs, read the other's message and reflect on identity, and separation; on the unspoken; on being, and the fragmentary nature of speech. The participants engage in this exercise three times, each instance being at least two weeks apart. Each time, the experience of "double isolation" brings a new understanding of the mediating power of words and perhaps a sense of new possibilities in communication. What do two reasoning people want to say to each other, behind the words? That is the question.