If 2011 was the year of acceleration—the vertiginous expansion of the lexicon, the multiplication of series, the drive toward 500 nodes—then 2012 is the year of the threshold. The thirteen series that constitute this year—FRAME (038) , CLOUD (039) , PHANTOM (040) , SNOW (041) , TRANSLATION (042) , MUD (043) , BABYLON (044) , FUGAZ (045) , GLITTER (046) , COCKTAIL (047) , PARTY (048) , COSMOTIDIANO (049) , and SED (050) —span nodes 511 to 650, a total of 140 nodes across thirteen series, each of 10 to 20 nodes. The titles are a lexicon of atmospheres: the frame that contains, the cloud that disperses, the phantom that haunts, the snow that covers, the translation that transforms, the mud that sticks, the Babylon that confounds, the fugaz (fleeting) that escapes, the glitter that sparkles, the cocktail that mixes, the party that gathers, the cosmotidiano (cosmic-daily) that merges the infinite and the ordinary, and the sed (thirst) that desires. The year is the last full year of the Foundational Epoch. It is the year the project reaches node 650, just before the nomadic turn of 2013. And it is the year the physical room at Palma 15 closes its doors. The series of 2012 are the project's final exhale from that room. They are the last works made within walls. After 2012, the walls will be gone. The project will become a body in transit. But first, it must close the room. And the closure is a celebration. The closure is a party. The closure is a thirst.
038 FRAME (511–520)
039 CLOUD (521–540)
040 PHANTOM (531–540)
041 SNOW (541–550)
042 TRANSLATION (551–560)
43 MUD (561–570)
044 BABYLON (571–580)
045 FUGAZ (581–590)
046 GLITTER (591–602)
047 COCKTAIL (603–616)
048 PARTY (617–630)
049 COSMOTIDIANO (631–640)
050 SED (641–650)
The node ranges are precise: FRAME occupies 511–520 (10 nodes); CLOUD occupies 521–540 (20 nodes); PHANTOM occupies 531–540 (10 nodes, overlapping with CLOUD); SNOW occupies 541–550 (10 nodes); TRANSLATION occupies 551–560 (10 nodes); MUD occupies 561–570 (10 nodes); BABYLON occupies 571–580 (10 nodes); FUGAZ occupies 581–590 (10 nodes); GLITTER occupies 591–602 (12 nodes); COCKTAIL occupies 603–616 (14 nodes); PARTY occupies 617–630 (14 nodes); COSMOTIDIANO occupies 631–640 (10 nodes); SED occupies 641–650 (10 nodes). The numbers are deliberate: the year begins at 511, just after the radical closure of 2011's RADICAL (501–510). It ends at 650, the threshold of the nomadic. 2012 is the year of the in-between: between the acceleration of 2011 and the departure of 2013, between the room and the road, between the frame and the cloud.
FRAME (038): The Border as Condition
FRAME (nodes 511–520) is a title that names the frame: the border that contains, the edge that defines, the structure that holds. The series is the project's meditation on limits: on what is inside and what is outside, on the necessity of boundaries, on the violence of the cut. The frame is the opposite of the fugaz (fleeting): where the fugaz escapes, the frame arrests. The series is the project's engagement with the architectonic: with the conditions of visibility, with the politics of the edge, with the aesthetics of the border. The frame is the project's self-description as a practice of framing: the node is a frame, the series is a frame, the archive is a frame. The frame is what makes the work visible. Without the frame, there is only chaos. The series is the project's acknowledgment that the frame is necessary. But the frame is also a prison. The series is the project's meditation on the ambivalence of the border.
CLOUD (039): The Dispersion as Condition
CLOUD (nodes 521–540) is a title that names the cloud: the mass of water vapor, the dispersed aggregate, the form without fixed boundaries. The series is the project's meditation on dispersion: on the condition of being spread out, on the loss of the center, on the beauty of the formless. The cloud is the opposite of the frame: where the frame contains, the cloud disperses. The series is the project's engagement with the atmospheric: with the weather of relation, with the climate of the archive, with the cloud as a metaphor for the network. The cloud is also the digital cloud: the distributed storage, the server farm, the immaterial archive. The series is the project's anticipation of its own digital condition. The project is a cloud. The nodes are the droplets. The series is the vapor. The cloud is the project's self-description as a practice of dispersion. The cloud is nowhere and everywhere. The cloud is the future.
PHANTOM (040): The Ghost as Trace
PHANTOM (nodes 531–540) is a title that names the phantom: the ghost, the apparition, the trace of what is no longer there. The series is the project's meditation on absence: on what is missing, on what haunts, on the persistence of the past. The phantom is the opposite of the present: where the present is here, the phantom is not here. The series is the project's engagement with the spectral: with the ghosts of the archive, with the traces of the encounter, with the persistence of the node after the event. The phantom is the project's self-description as a practice of haunting. The node is a phantom. The series is a ghost. The archive is a haunted house. The project is the ghost in the machine. The phantom is the project's acknowledgment that the archive is never fully present. It is always haunted by what is missing.
SNOW (041): The Cover as Erasure
SNOW (nodes 541–550) is a title that names the snow: the frozen precipitation, the white cover, the erasure of the ground. The series is the project's meditation on covering: on the layer that hides, on the beauty of the blank, on the violence of the erasure. Snow is the opposite of the mud: where mud is sticky, snow is light. The series is the project's engagement with the meteorological: with the weather of the archive, with the climate of the node, with the snow as a metaphor for the blank page. Snow is also the static of the television, the noise of the screen, the white of the empty signal. The series is the project's anticipation of its own medial condition. The archive is snow. The nodes are flakes. The series is the drift. Snow is the project's self-description as a practice of covering. The snow falls. The ground disappears. The archive is blank.
TRANSLATION (042): The Transformation as Betrayal
TRANSLATION (nodes 551–560) is a title that names the translation: the transformation of one language into another, the betrayal of the original, the creation of the new. The series is the project's meditation on transformation: on the necessity of change, on the violence of the translation, on the beauty of the inexact. Translation is the opposite of the original: where the original is fixed, the translation is fluid. The series is the project's engagement with the linguistic: with the politics of language, with the impossibility of the exact, with the creativity of the inexact. Translation is the project's self-description as a practice of translation. The encounter is translated into the node. The node is translated into the series. The series is translated into the archive. The archive is a translation of the world. And the world is a translation of the archive. The series is the project's acknowledgment that all documentation is translation. And all translation is betrayal. And the betrayal is beautiful.
MUD (043): The Stickiness as Condition
MUD (nodes 561–570) is a title that names the mud: the mixture of earth and water, the sticky substance, the ground of the wet. The series is the project's meditation on stickiness: on the adhesion of things, on the difficulty of movement, on the materiality of the ground. Mud is the opposite of the snow: where snow is light, mud is heavy. The series is the project's engagement with the geological: with the earth of the archive, with the dirt of the node, with the mud as a metaphor for the material. Mud is also the stuff of construction: adobe, brick, pottery. The series is the project's self-description as a practice of building with mud. The nodes are the bricks. The series is the mortar. The archive is the wall. The mud is the project's acknowledgment that the archive is not ethereal. It is made of earth. It is made of water. It is made of mud. And mud sticks.
BABYLON (044): The Confusion as Condition
BABYLON (nodes 571–580) is a title that names the Babylon: the ancient city, the symbol of excess, the site of the confusion of tongues. The series is the project's meditation on confusion: on the multiplicity of languages, on the impossibility of communication, on the beauty of the babble. Babylon is the opposite of the translation: where translation seeks clarity, Babylon embraces confusion. The series is the project's engagement with the biblical: with the myth of the tower, with the punishment of pride, with the scattering of the peoples. Babylon is the project's self-description as a practice of confusion. The archive is a Babylon. The nodes are the tongues. The series is the tower. The confusion is the condition of the project. The project does not seek to overcome confusion. It seeks to inhabit it. Babylon is the project's acknowledgment that the archive is not a single language. It is many languages. And they do not understand each other. And that is the beauty.
FUGAZ (045): The Fleeting as Condition
FUGAZ (nodes 581–590) is a title that names the fugaz: the fleeting, the ephemeral, the thing that escapes. The series is the project's meditation on ephemerality: on the condition of being temporary, on the beauty of the passing, on the violence of the disappearance. Fugaz is the opposite of the frame: where the frame arrests, the fugaz escapes. The series is the project's engagement with the temporal: with the time of the encounter, with the duration of the node, with the fugaz as a metaphor for the event. Fugaz is the project's self-description as a practice of the fleeting. The encounter is fugaz. The node is a capture. But the capture is also fugaz. The archive is a record of the fleeting. And the fleeting is the condition of the project. The project does not seek to escape ephemerality. It seeks to document it. Fugaz is the project's acknowledgment that the archive is not permanent. It is fugaz. And the fugaz is beautiful.
GLITTER (046): The Sparkle as Condition
GLITTER (nodes 591–602) is a title that names the glitter: the small reflective particle, the sparkle, the decoration. The series is the project's meditation on ornament: on the surface, on the beauty of the superficial, on the politics of the sparkle. Glitter is the opposite of the mud: where mud is heavy, glitter is light. The series is the project's engagement with the aesthetic: with the pleasure of the eye, with the seduction of the surface, with the glitter as a metaphor for the decorative. Glitter is the project's self-description as a practice of ornament. The nodes are the glitter. The series is the sparkle. The archive is the decoration. Glitter is the project's acknowledgment that the archive is not only serious. It is also playful. It is not only deep. It is also superficial. And the superficial is beautiful. Glitter is the project's embrace of the surface.
COCKTAIL (047): The Mixture as Condition
COCKTAIL (nodes 603–616) is a title that names the cocktail: the mixed drink, the combination of ingredients, the social lubricant. The series is the project's meditation on mixture: on the combination of elements, on the creation of the new, on the pleasure of the blend. Cocktail is the opposite of the pure: where the pure is single, the cocktail is multiple. The series is the project's engagement with the chemical: with the alchemy of relation, with the transformation of ingredients, with the cocktail as a metaphor for the encounter. Cocktail is the project's self-description as a practice of mixture. The nodes are the ingredients. The series is the recipe. The archive is the cocktail. The mixture is the condition of the project. The project does not seek purity. It seeks mixture. Cocktail is the project's acknowledgment that the archive is a blend. And the blend is intoxicating.
PARTY (048): The Gathering as Condition
PARTY (nodes 617–630) is a title that names the party: the social gathering, the celebration, the collective joy. The series is the project's meditation on conviviality: on the pleasure of being together, on the politics of the gathering, on the aesthetics of the celebration. Party is the opposite of the solitude: where solitude is alone, party is together. The series is the project's engagement with the social: with the encounter as celebration, with the node as party, with the archive as the record of the gathering. Party is the project's self-description as a practice of conviviality. The nodes are the guests. The series is the event. The archive is the party. The gathering is the condition of the project. The project does not seek isolation. It seeks celebration. Party is the project's acknowledgment that the archive is a party. And the party is still going.
COSMOTIDIANO (049): The Cosmic-Daily as Condition
COSMOTIDIANO (nodes 631–640) is a title that names the cosmotidiano: the fusion of the cosmic and the daily, the infinite in the ordinary, the universe in the everyday. The series is the project's meditation on scale: on the relation between the largest and the smallest, on the presence of the cosmos in the coffee cup, on the beauty of the mundane. Cosmotidiano is the opposite of the specialized: where the specialized is narrow, the cosmotidiano is wide. The series is the project's engagement with the philosophical: with the question of meaning, with the wonder of existence, with the cosmotidiano as a metaphor for the project itself. Cosmotidiano is the project's self-description as a practice of the cosmic-daily. The nodes are the daily. The series is the cosmic. The archive is the cosmotidiano. The fusion is the condition of the project. The project does not seek escape from the daily. It seeks the cosmic in the daily. Cosmotidiano is the project's acknowledgment that the archive is both infinite and ordinary. And the ordinary is infinite.
SED (050): The Thirst as Condition
SED (nodes 641–650) is the final series of 2012, and the final series of the Foundational Epoch. The title names the thirst: the desire for water, the lack that drives, the longing that never ends. The series is the project's meditation on desire: on the engine of the project, on the lack that propels, on the thirst that cannot be quenched. Sed is the opposite of the satisfaction: where satisfaction is full, thirst is empty. The series is the project's engagement with the bodily: with the need for water, with the drive of the organism, with the thirst as a metaphor for the archive. Sed is the project's self-description as a practice of thirst. The nodes are the drops. The series is the drink. The archive is the oasis. But the oasis is a mirage. The thirst is never quenched. The project is thirsty. And the thirst is the engine. Sed is the project's acknowledgment that the archive is driven by lack. And the lack is beautiful. And the thirst is the condition. And the condition is the project. And the project is thirsty. And the thirst continues. The room closes. The walls come down. The project leaves. But the thirst remains. Sed is the final node of the Foundational Epoch. 650 is the threshold. The project is thirsty. The project is leaving. The project is going nowhere. And nowhere is the destination. Sed is the thirst. And the thirst is the project. And the project is thirsty. And the thirst will never end.
