Omri Ganchrow, Marcelle Tehila Bitton
Archaeologists are tasked with discovering remains that bear testimony to the lives of humans in the past. In the process of an archaeological dig, man-made objects are found buried in a bed of naturally formed organic material. It is up to the archaeologist to determine what is man-made and what is not. They must then accordingly decide whether the object is worthy of collection; documentation and further study, or alternatively academically worthless. What happens when such researchers encounter an object that is neither here nor there, balancing on the fence of importance?
When it is unclear whether an object is manmade or 'naturally' formed?
Our displays present materials that serve to highlight that precise area of uncertainty, of those objects that at first glance seem to be crafted deliberately, but then natural upon reexamination.
Between the objects that are clearly 'something' and the obvious nothings' lies a wide spectrum, a gray area full of 'maybes': probably nothing.
In the video- a visual journey through the desert, exploring the blurred line between the natural and the human, through the eyes of an archaeologist and a shaman, grappling with what is remembered and what is forgotten.
Supported by the Laboratory for the study of Human Cultural Evolution at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Jerusalem Design Week.
Probably Nothing, 2024.
Design, Art, and Visual Culture Magazine.