SCIENTIFIC VOYAGE WITH VARIOUS EVENTS AND INSTALLATIONS
TELEMATIC
RITUALS FOR WHITE NIGHTS
ARCTIC
CIRCLE, FORMER U.S.S.R.
4 – 26 AUGUST 1989
The
premise of this phony scientific voyage that takes the artist from
Moscow to Leningrad and on to the polar north aboard an icebreaker
is the confirmation of the artist’s hypothesis that the Arctic
Circle is in fact a square meter (see no 22 and 24). During the
course of his journey, the artist will make various measurements
and send dispatches to Soviet Academy of Sciences and to other scientific
and cultural institutions on five continents. At the last minute,
an inexplicable equipment failure will prevent him from collecting
data offering “conclusive” proof of his hypothesis,
thus leaving the question in suspense. As a consolation, the artist
will sail down Severnaïa Dvina River to a monastery in Elikii
Ouistiouk, where he will he transform himself from scientist into
shaman and celebrate a ritual fusing time and space on the last
“white night” of the season.