Dari Bae

Description

Chandelier: Hair Filament

A chandelier is an exuberant light. It mediates a fantasy through its extravagant decorative illumination. In modern history, the light source for the chandelier has changed from candles to electrical light. It has been a symbol of wealth, vanity, and extravagant power.

The chandelier once housed in the Cathedral was transferred to the bourgeoisie home along with its powerful hierarchical associations from 15th century, distinguishing status, a signal light marking boundaries between the ruling class and the common people. The light epitomizes the capitalistic society, placed up high on the ceiling in a gorgeous marbled surveying, like a protector and observer.

‘Chandelier; Hair Filament’ attempts to expose the capitalistic structures we are entangled within by re-presenting this power indicating light. Inside the glass bottles in place of candles and electrical light, there is human hair. Human hair is the only easily removal part of body. In many cultural traditions hair is a contentious and powerful issue. The Japanese cut Koreans’ hair as part of its colonial program, Jewish women wear wigs to hide their hair. Hair seems to have some powerful significance. Hair symbolises individuals collected and contained with in the bottles. These hair filled bottles are hung together making a chain and constructed in tiers the shape of a Pyramid. This structure suggests the way in which the capitalistic system, collects, contains, and exploits individuals, the working class, and the Third World people. This re-presenting of capitalistic structure encapsulated by the chandelier like capitalism is seductively beautiful. However, the dark underbelly is that capitalism takes over individuals and emits light through them.