THE UNBEARABLE LIKENESS: ABDELKADER BENCHAMMA

For his second solo show at the gallery, French-Algerian artist Abdelkader Benchamma presents works on paper and sculptural installations, which use the gallery space as a stage to develop new demonstrations and theories. While Benchamma's Blue Beam Project from his 2013 show at the gallery meticulously studied the conspiracy theories of a NASA satellite project and the construction of social projections and popular knowledge, The Unbearable Likeness draws on this research to address one of the key elements in the formation of the collective unconscious: the rumour.

While the state and secret agencies were plotting in the dark in the Blue Beam Project, in this exhibition the human mind becomes the protagonist and individuals witness events as reported accounts are passed through the word of mouth. Actions, time and places are distorted to give birth to multiple narratives that the artist has been collecting with a predilection for fantastical and extraordinary apparitions or visions. Benchamma builds on our abilities to perceive the world the way we do and highlights the unprecedented phenomena that ultimately either sheds light on grey areas or opens new territories in scientific theory.