Florian Mehmeti Löffler

I – See- You – See – Me – See – You

While you are there, I stay here, but when you return, I will turn with you. I turn, I turn, I turn. You are not here, you are not there, you are somewhere in between. Or maybe not just somewhere; maybe you are filling this space. The lens replaces the eye, and the evil eye is placed between the objects and my I. Rolling … rolling … eyes … as if to fill a void.

The superstitious curse of the “evil eye” is a common belief around the world, deriving from ancient times, it is today especially widespread in the Mediterranean, west Asian, and Latin American regions. Many cultures believe that receiving the evil eye from a person, animal, god, or demon that is inflicted by the supernatural power will cause misfortune or injury. Apotropaic charms and amulets, words and gestures, have historically and are currently used to ward off or reflect the powers of the evil eye.

The sculptures displayed in the exhibition draw on this belief – they refer to apotropaic charms and amulets used in the Mediterranean regions and ram horns, garlic; and scarecrows that are often placed outside of a house around Albanian and Macedonian regions, which are meant to redirect the gaze to the object and away from the dwelling.