In this work, Stern creates an unidentified, abstract, ‘general’ monument that is at the same time very familiar. It is simultaneously a monument of all-memory and no-memory. It is covered in paint that simulates natural stone and is squeezed into the entire height of the space, much smaller than required for its dramatic presence. Yet this drama remains within the confines of an empty gesture, a misplaced bombastic presence. By its nature, a monument strives for distinct ideological representation and validation of a singular truth, doing so by pointing at an event or personality; in this case the monument points at nothing at all, remaining aimless. In this work, Stern creates an unidentified, abstract, ‘general’ monument that is at the same time very familiar. It is simultaneously a monument of all-memory and no-memory. It is covered in paint that simulates natural stone and is squeezed into the entire height of the space, much smaller than required for its dramatic presence. Yet this drama remains within the confines of an empty gesture, a misplaced bombastic presence. By its nature, a monument strives for distinct ideological representation and validation of a singular truth, doing so by pointing at an event or personality; in this case the monument points at nothing at all, remaining aimless.
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