1/ 70×74 cm
Defense Mechanism
The experience of self-determination subjects the individual to the necessity of confronting themselves with the surrounding world: we require an interaction—a friction with something outside of our body and our established meaning—in order to define our own boundaries.
The method of identification, which serves as a foundation, establishes a field of confrontation and opposition between the self and the «other”—a defense structure is built.
2/ 60×53 cm
Combination
Elements of a heraldic grid are a method of inscription, establishing an identification—its symbolic protective field—which also defines the subject’s belonging to a specific perspective and a particular group.
The reassembled protective gear from the utilitarian world becomes the basis for the shield frame: serving as the foundation for the heraldic symbol, it responds to the function of defining one’s relationship with the surrounding world, as well as to the possibility of infinite reassembly and reproducibility.
«Reproducible objects, like cars, can always be replaced; in that sense, they possess a kind of indestructibility, a certain immortality. New and cutting-edge technologies do not produce unique, irreplaceable things, but they offer something else: the promise of transtemporality and even immortality—a promise guaranteed by reproducibility and substitutability.» —B. Gross
3/ 62×56 cm
4/ 74×62 cm
As heraldic elements, the components of shields and coats of arms were selected: frameworks that do not reference any specific historical or geographical context.
5/ 66×53 cm
Materials
4 mm sheet steel, protective gear, enamel