De/constructed Meanings showcases an installation developed by Hala Amer, Saga Elkabbash, Levi Hammett, Maryam Al Homaid, Giovanni Innella, & George Paul. Through the lens of this project space collaboration, the installation titled Future Memories is reimagined by co-curators Noora Abdulmajeed & Rim Albahrani to reflect upon the deconstruction theory of the philosopher Jacques Derrida (1930-2004).
    This methodology focuses on the indefinite interpretations embedded within the examination of speech and writing that formulate language and meaning. Existing discourses relating to particular cultures and geographies play a central part in our perceptions of the truth. Dominant power structures, often manifested through binary oppositions, perpetuate hierarchical understandings of systems, influencing what is commonly perceived as True or false. 


   

Within the oppositional structures of either/or, the text reveals an alternative reading that reconstructs preconceived notions of meaning. With reference to the Derridean method, the installation acts as a machine materializing text as a mode of representation dependent on ideological influences. Using sand as a canvas to convey critical thought centered around the historical contexts of the past, present and future, the machine invites the viewer to observe their fixed and fluid nature. This exhibition unveils the evolution of linguistic systems, challenging inherited interpretations of oppositional notions as they are often understood.
    Future Memories is an installation that acts as a writing device, using sand as a recording medium and a metal sphere as a writing tool. Computer numerical control renders precise motions of writing and erasing through a resistant landscape of sand, navigating the dynamics of human intention and natural forces, creating an earthen digital display. Through computational choreography, the display composes textual phrases through the critical lens of the Derridean deconstruction theory. By fusing technology and art, the machine invites the audience to engage with both the aesthetic and the philosophical, thereby exploring the complexity of meaning behind language, identity, and socio-cultural experiences.
    The artwork was originally commissioned by The Gallery at VCUarts Qatar as part of the Language as Machine exhibition in 2023. The project is supported by xLab through the Institute for Creative Research at VCUarts Qatar.

Exhibitions & Publications:

Watering the Desert. YUZ Museum, Shanghai, China. (Group Exhibition, International). 8 November 2023 - 3 March 2024.   

Deconstructed Meanings. Mathaf Arab Museum of Modern Art. (Solo Exhibition, National). 26 October 2023 - March 2024.

Language as Machine. The Gallery, Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar, Doha, Qatar (Commissioned, Solo Exhibition, Local). 12 February - 8 April 2023.

Concept: Giovanni Innella, Hala Amer, & Saga Elkabbash.
Type Design: Maryam Al Homaid.
Writing: Giovanni Innella, Maryam Al Homaid, Noora Abdulmajeed, & Rim Albahrani.
Electronics & Programing: Levi Hammett & George Paul
Production: Levi Hammett, Hala Amer, & Saga Elkabbash.
Originally commissioned by: The Gallery @ VCUarts Qatar