Virtues against a Virus

What element turns a simple object or image into a luck charm? When does craft become witchcraft and mater turns into an idol? Using different mediums, ‘Virtues against a Virus’ is seeking to find the component that creates this mystical sense. Tracing back to the history of magic, religion and idolatry, this research brings up questions of identity, immigration and cultural appropriation. Religions do not disappear; They are swallowed by new religions and continue to play roles in them. For this reason, there are a lot of similar elements in different religions, as well as contradictions within the same religion. In Judaism, idolatry and magic are considered evil and are strictly forbidden and yet mystics and magic still find their way into Jewish traditions. The installation consists of objects and paintings following the aesthetics of ritual object from different cultures in different times. Together they attempt to form an alternate reality that allows a religious experience to take place. The project developed in parallel to the pandemic. This unusual time evoked uncertainty, ambiguity and fear that were naturally assimilated into the works. Some of symbols appearing in the works bear clear cultural connotations while other have an independent existence, further away from the source.