Elective Affinities

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Artist: Eszter Bornemisza

Title: Elective Affinities

Attribution: Elective Affinities, 2021, Eszter Bornemisza

Year: 2021

Materials: Pure foam, paper pulp, spools, nettle string, overprinted newsprint

Dimensions: 130 x 100 x 30 cm

Image Statement: Inspired by Goethe's novel exploring human passions, this piece deconstructs the multilayered nature of personal identity. Hanging objects reveal abstract landscapes that conceal faces, with inner surfaces displaying profile silhouettes filled with inverse map images—metaphorically mapping the complexity of human interiority. Separated by empty spools and tied by nettle strings, these objects dynamically interact as viewers move, creating shifting constellations of connection and distance. Each subtle movement transforms relationships: some figures face each other intimately, while others turn away, revealing hidden profiles and inner landscapes.