The Worlds i[i]

The Worlds i[i] project is dedicated to the phenomenon of the library, which I explore through the prism of the post-Soviet space where it is still perceived in two ways: on the one hand as an institution that promotes socialization, on the other hand as a place of alienation.

From an information theory perspective, a library is a structured system for encoding, transmitting, storing, and retrieving information. As a system, the library has boundaries and a set of rules, as well as spatial and temporal codes. These codes are particularly explicit in terms of lending periods, the institution’s opening hours, and the boundaries of its buildings and rooms. These boundaries create the necessary conditions for comfortably using the collection.

Searching and retrieving information through catalogs, databases, and direct browsing resembles a data transmission channel, where minimizing irrelevant search results, failures, and interference is crucial.

Libraries enable intertextual relationships. This creates a web of semiotic processes that enrich the code of the originally formed Message (texts refer to, build on, or challenge each other). At the same time, each item in the library is a sign that conveys meaning in its own context. The title of a book, the name of an author, or a library card number are signs that point to a wider network of meanings. This is why, as part of the project, I explore the library not only as a whole as a system, but also through its individual components.  

“Card catalogue” series, 2021-2022

As part of my processes on the “Card catalogue” series, I interacted with libraries in various Russian cities, including Samara, Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Vyborg, Pushkin, and Kolomna. At this stage, I worked with lists of literature available at the time of consultation by anonymous library users.

The randomness of the process was important to me because the librarians provided me with data on reading lists at their own discretion.

A person’s choice of books can provide insight into their personality, preferences, interests, and requests over time. Additionally, a list of available literature is a type of coded document of social needs.

I turned to book register lists, creating an inversion of a library card on which I placed “reader information.” I had no personal data, only the preferences of each user, such as titles and annotations of books, and occasionally gender, age, and type of education. I worked with this information as a text cipher, translating the textual sign into a simplified, visually comprehensible image. Thus, I developed an archive of “readers” that contains both an indexical sign of the flow of time and a sign that represents an indication or reference to the register.

“Accompanying Notes”, 2021 — WORK-IN-PROGRESS

“Accompanying Notes” series of the project is a textile book in development.
I use hand and machine embroidery as well as letterpress techniques to create it.
The textile book in the project not only brings together a set of images I have collected from different libraries, but is also a document that accompanies the project. It contains key concepts, endnotes, notes and explanations. 

“Other” series, 2022

The “Other” series included work with things found in library books in the city of Kolomna. It was started and completed during the Artkommunalka residency.
I was interested in things that have no stated value and are mostly random, unnecessary and forgotten. They fall out of registration processes and at the same time gain the potential for permanent displacement. By collecting these random, out-of-time and out-of-place data, I have created an archive of traces of human presence in the library system.

“Invitations”, 2021- WORK-IN-PROGRESS

In 2021, I initiated a “survey” as part of the “Invitations” series, which was presented twice: once as part of the interim exhibition at the New Tretyakov Gallery and once in the Zero Room exhibition space in Samara. 

This installation was a “card catalog” in which viewers were invited to share their personal library experiences while remaining anonymous and then receive a referral to a library in their city. 

 This data will be used to develop the next part within the project.