Scytale

Artist Statement

The Spartan scytale is the communication tool that does the most harm to the universality of language.

One wooden baton was kept in Sparta and the other was given to a spy. To send secret information the spy wrote onto a strip of parchment, wrapped the strip around the scytale and then removed it. The strip travelled without the wood. If it fell into enemy hands, they could extract nothing from it.
The technology that I use is that of traditional book binding. When binding my books I decode. The scytale is me. The audience leafing through these books find themselves weaving with their own fictions. The scytale is you.

April 2011

This project was part of Sharjah Biennial 10

Commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation