D.I.Y. MIR #1

Mixed media installation, 2018

D.I.Y. MIR is a series of complete opensource toolkits, which allow users to reproduce religious miracles. Each toolkit provides all the necessary resources (setup scheme, open hardware circuit, open software, equipment, and instructions) to set up a working copy of a famous miracle. The resources are shared freely under the Public Domain Mark 1.0. license. The D.I.Y. MIR#1 toolkit contains the resources needed to build the interactive installation of the miraculous weeping picture.

The opensource and D.I.Y. movement hack on closed technological systems, usually perceived as black-boxes, and provide access to their functionality, allowing their re-appropriation. Similarly, the D.I.Y. MIR symbolically claims the right to gain knowledge on the mechanisms that affect our lives, rather than relying on problem-solving black-boxes. D.I.Y. MIRacles stand as symbolic constructions that underline the vainness of conceding one’s right to act, while they examine the possibility of applying discourses on openness, sharing, community solidarity and D.I.Y. problem solving to other domains.

D.I.Y. MIRacle is an oxymoron. Religious miracles have been synonyms of mediated action, concession of power to external forces, admittance of one’s insufficiency and passiveness. They parasite upon human ignorance, maintaining obedience and forging exploitation. On the other hand, the D.I.Y. movement stands for relying on one’s own skills and power, reappropriating and reusing available resources, connecting with communities to find solutions and freely exchanging knowledge. This way, the D.I.Y. MIR toolkits are empowering instruments that encourage people to vindicate their power to act upon their own affairs.

Exhibitions:

Krini Art Gallery. Kardiani, Tinos island. September 2018

Artificial Edens Group Exhibition. Loutra, Tinos island. July-August 2018