An old family photograph from the 1940’s, adapted into the Totem series. The image is presented as photojournalism but the quiet presence of the obelisk removes it from the rational… quiet surrealism? … real-life juxtaposed with an unreal object where the human subject remains indifferent to the situation, like the art is indifferent to reality. 

Tristan had written me about an ‘Egregore’, an occult term which I had to look it up; a psychic manifestation brought about by a group of people. I like this idea. Shared thoughts, the mindscape of a group, a motivation or influence that ties them together. A psychic concept, a non-physical entity depicted as monument signifying humanity’s psychic connection to each other.

Much like the Ojibwe believed in guardian spirits, these monoliths are believed to be tutelary in some way: guarding or guiding the ‘family’. The family, in this case as the entirety of the human species. Some have used the word ‘watchers,’ a common term used throughout history, in some cases involving spiritual guidance to help aid and evolve humanity. It is suspected the presence of these objects coincides with some critical moments in history, typically in times of unrest during paradigm shifts in the collective consciousness. In this particular case, WWII on the rise in Europe.