Quackery

I’m certainly not a therapist, nor do I have the ambition to become one. The Plot is, in a way, becoming myth by centering a narrative that hovers between facts (the reality of ecological collapse, the actual presence of the land) and fiction (proposed ‘solutions’, the attempted (re)activation of land, and the name –  The Plot –  referencing scenarios). It’s only suitable to delve into methods from other ‘mythical’ systems, whether that may be pop culture or practices such as the art of spagyria. This involves the use of special effects and (visual) trickery. This may be considered as an integral part of the poetic world of artistic research – as opposed to hard science  – but evil tongues could define it as quackery. 

The word quack comes from the Dutch word kwakzalver – which was spelled quacksalver in old spelling – ‘hawker of salve’. In the Middle Ages, quack meant ‘shouting’, because merchants of dubious medical products would call out their supposed wholesomeness to the visitors of markets.

Despite its negative connotation, ‘quackery’ provides the elastic that is needed to stretch my artistic practise beyond the factualities of science. And in my quest for solutions to dealing with ecological grief I may encounter not only false ones; I may stumble upon functional ones, too.

There’s also a sardonic pleasure in accumulating talismans, potions, or thought experiments. Some would call them mistakes.