Observations 2007/8 (sentences)
Berghs, Antoine
Geleen, 1971
Lives and works in Maastricht
www.antoineberghs.com
In the installation “mind the mindless mind the mindless mind...” by Antoine Berghs, the title text moves through the room as an endlessly repeating mantra.
Berghs sees his work as part of an endless flow which he can plug into at any moment in time, as if there is a permanent and timeless undercurrent which links people and things to each other. This is reminiscent of the classic “panta rhei” about Heraclitus: everything is in a state of flux. His disciple Cratylus claimed that it is impossible for a person to step into the same river twice, as the water flows on and never stays in the same place. The idea of Plato that “all things give way, nothing remains” is also relevant to Berghs’ work.
The installation is a showroom as well as a place for contemplation. It asks the spectator to determine his/her own place.