The Bureau of Illumination (2020) is an installation at the Elsewhere Museum in Greensboro, NC.
The Bureau serves as a site of literal and metaphorical light and epiphany within the museum. In this work, I expanded upon the pattern of mirrors on the walls initially installed by Agustina Woodgate and Ian Montgomery in 2009. A spark-like sculpture that I welded from collection metal hangs at the center of the room; the mirror-covered walls reflect and refract its light.
The result is a disorienting experience of light and space that makes for the brightest room in Elsewhere.
Beneath the hanging light spark is an object oracle sourced from objects in the Elsewhere collection, used for intuitive readings I conducted with inquisitive and brave members of the public.
Read more about the project here on the Elsewhere Museum website.
An object oracle functions much like a tarot deck— but instead of cards, the objects are the foundation for meaning-making and divination. We used a set of two dice to cast each object, using 3-5 objects per readings.
When one receives a reading at the Bureau, that person enters into a conversation with the multitude of historical, cultural, spiritual and personal meanings imbued in the objects of their reading.
