Cloud Rapture
installation at Kunsthalle.Ost, Leipzig
glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin, varnish,
2 lamps, aluminum, steel, floor tiles, painting
dimensions variable, 2023
Solipsism, the philosophical thesis that only the existence of one‘s own ego can be certain, forms an ideal basis for an ego-centered online culture. Only I have the right information, the best style, the correct political attitude. I‘ve played through life, now it‘s all about sidequests. Main Character Energy, all others are NPCs stored on the server. But the Server racks are demolished and cleared out, the traces indicate grosstheft of raw materials. A complex library, has been degraded to pure material value. Its inconspicuous design has not saved it from being perceived as a loot item. The basic infrastructure in the room, however, still seems to be functional. The lights are on, ventilation shafts and floor plates form a foundation on which an exchange of information could take place, a building map suggests an escape route. All these details indicate that the rapture, the moment the believers ascend tho heaven while the sinners have to exist in an apocalyptic world, has taken place just recently. Was I so preoccupied with myself that I might not have noticed it? The film Left Behind: The Movie ends with the main character declaring that faith is the only thing you need in the end times. But faith in what? Faith in higher powers? Currencies? Aliens? Evangelical American Christians are convinced that after an apocalyptic event they will get to their Creator „in the clouds.“ But there is no cloud, only other people‘s computers. while the christian god can‘t hold back on his judgement, the villain Thanos from the movie series Avengers simply removes 50% of all living beings from the universe, completely arbitrarily and free of discrimination.No wonder Thanos is becoming an increasingly popular children‘s name in the U.S.
*Freud intensifies* But wait! If I‘m still here, does that mean I‘m not a good person? Does it even make a difference if there‘s only me anyway? The answer to this question is provided by the main character of the series The Last Man on Earth: „I may not be a good person, I may have my faults, but I‘m still a good person!“
Text: Thomas Mader
