280 X 55 X 350 cm
Rvs, Persian carpet
The blending of autonomous ready-made art and applied art plays an important role in Schscht’s works, and this intriguing installation is no different. Schscht often creates improbable images that look like they shouldn’t exist.
In “Note to Self: Remind This,” Schscht explores the interplay between memory and the way it forms, distorts and eventually fades. This intriguing artwork invites the viewer to reflect on memories and how they influence our sense of identity. For everyone, the slide undoubtedly acts as a trigger for an endless stream of images and memories that are extracted from our memory. The slide is given a completely new meaning by both adding and removing elements. The carpet added to the slide rubs, literally and figuratively, just like the lack of stairs. These disruptive elements create a kind of irregularity and discontinuity.
What are we looking at? A dysfunctional slide, with carpet and no ladder? A beautiful symbiosis is formed by the combination of a simple form of play with one of the earliest elements of applied art, the Persian carpet, which today has disappeared almost unnoticed from the European market. The Persian carpet represents a rich symbolism of cultural heritage and history. The nomadic stories and patterns that invariably adorn the carpets have meanwhile been lost due to the sedentary way of life.
The lack of a ladder creates a sense of impossibility, a barrier that prevents us from sliding further, and symbolizes the elusiveness of our memory. It reminds us that memories can sometimes be difficult to access, and that we are not always able to consciously choose which memories to keep and which to lose.
“Note to Self: Remind This” invites the viewer to reflect on the strength and fragility of our memory. It raises questions about how memories shape us, but also how they can distort and eventually fade.