Albert Camus walks into a large room where a 3D scale model of the solar system has been built. In it you can clearly see the planets move in relation to one another in their course around the Sun, which was the size of a volley ball.
As Camus walked among these spheres in their clockwork rotation, each orb with the reach of his hands, what seemed wrong came clear to his mind. Who's view was this before him? Who strides through the skies and can crush Mercury in the palm of one hand? The view before him was God's view of the solar system.
If we were going to show man's view of the solar system, we would struggle to represent the perspective of ambivalence, of horror, of a mote of dust. For all of science's talk of atheism, they still reject the reality that everyone lives when they grasp how small they are, in favor of a view only God could have. A view that they cling to like a child clings go a blanket.
At this Albert Camus laughed.
It is in that spirit that I am writing The Electric Mosque. Largely a work of process art, it is loosely based on my two times living in the region. The first time was in 2004 at the height of the Intifada and the second was in 2006 for the Hezbollah war.
Needless to say, none of this is to be trusted. My interest here is the creation of something very human sized. My work here is to take the material of my tale (memories, fantasies, emails, news pieces, etc) and then run them though a series of processes, as one develops themes in music.
I do not mean to be an expert, to be the authority, to be cruel or to be kind. I don't mean anything at all, in the sense of intention. The aim is for an intentionless work with the meanings arising from the relationships in the material. Even when I am being funny, I don't always intend to be.
So let me invite you to click and enter The Electric Mosque
