/23:58:31/
“I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones”.
Mariah Carey**
23:58:31* - made as part of EKWCs residency program - is an installation that features a series of porcelain swords and a film piece that brings to the fore the invisible, yet lethal, market forces and raises questions about the multifaceted nature of disaster capitalism.
The swords’ shapes are based on real stock market prices from 2022 to 2024 and focus on arms and defence industry, oil companies and tech. Their ebb and flow represent the ambiguous interplay between finance and historical events such as war in Ukraine and in the Middle East, US presidential elections, and the acceleration of AI technology.
The video piece 𐕣 Wall 𐕣 Street 𐕣 Fighter 𐕣 (duration: 0:27s) is both a visual parody and critical observation of the ever abstract/immaterial nature of stock markets, from crypto assets to derivative products, and the reward system underpins growth and collapse cycles.
The work touches upon some of the most pressing threats facing individuals, society and the planet; armed conflicts and violence, environmental collapse, and unregulated technological advances - who’s benefiting from them and who’s picking up the tab.
☠️ Companies featured:
Rheinmetall (DE - Defence), BAE Systems (UK - Defence), Lockheed Martin (US - Defence), RTX Corporation (US - Defence), Aramco (KSA - Oil), Shell (NL - Oil), BP (UK - Oil), Exxon (US - Oil), iShares Defence ETF (US - Finance), Nvidia (US - Tech), Meta (US - Tech), Dassault (FR - Defense), Leonardo (IT - Defence), Thales (FR - Defence), General Dynamics (US - Defence), Northrop Grumman (US - Defence), Chevron (US - Oil), Tesla (US - Auto/Tech), Alphabet (US - Tech)
*this is the current time at the Doomsday Clock - last update Jan 2025.
** This isn’t a real quote from the diva, but it’s unlikely that Albert Einstein said it either.
Year: 2024/2025