Mountain of Salt

Bindi Voras' Mountain of Salt is a text-based collage series that explores the interweaving social, political, and ideological arcs of the early phases of the pandemic, the post-Brexit era, and Black Lives Matter. It combines found photographs and digital shape collages with phrases and statements appropriated from news articles, press conferences, and social media. The series highlights the physical presence of words and speech, and the tension between the micro and macro, the individual and collective, and the personal and political. Voras' works echo the unfixed contemporary state, where words are free of hierarchy, nuance, and context and can be both absurd and critical.

Format: Paperback / softback
Publication date: 12 May 2023
Publisher: Perimeter Books

In the midst of a global pandemic, border closures, flight cancellations, and stay-at-home orders, the collective populace found solace in the constant barrage of news broadcasts, online analysis, social media, and rumors. Language, once fragmented, misinformed, and rhetorical, took on an unprecedented significance, carrying the weight of a collective consciousness.

In this context, artist Bindi Vora began to explore the power of language through her expansive series of text-based collage works known as Mountain of Salt. Comprising found photographs and digital shape collages, each piece was meticulously married to phrases and statements appropriated from news articles, press conferences, and social media. The 371-strong series, spanning the early phases of the pandemic, the post-Brexit era, and Black Lives Matter, traced the intricate social, political, and ideological arcs that shaped these critical times.

Vora reflects on her experience during this period, noting how the news amplified the physical presence of words and speech, emphasizing their ability to impact and carry weight. "I, like many others, became acutely aware of the landscape in which we were living," she explains. "Clinging to the news for updates, statistics, and curves... highlighted the way words and speech have a physical presence, bearing upon us and carrying weight."

Through a cacophony of visual and textual fragments, Vora's book, published by Perimeter Editions, revels in the tension between the micro and macro, the individual and collective, and the personal and political. She teases out and makes connections between individual events and linguistic armatures that contribute to the construction of broader historical eras and movements. The outcomes are incisive, sober, witty, and wry, magnifying the power of language to both define and dispel the collective mood.

Vora's visually poetic works echo the unfixed contemporary state, where alarm, agitation, and despair coexist with hope and resilience. Her collages juxtapose images of individuals and communities with phrases and statements that reflect the prevailing mood, creating a visual tapestry that captures the complexity and ambiguity of our times.

In a world overwhelmed by information, Vora's works serve as a reminder of the importance of language in shaping our understanding and perception of the world. They remind us that words have the power to inspire, unite, and transform, but they can also divide and manipulate. By exploring the intersection of visual and textual fragments, Vora invites us to reflect on the ways in which language shapes our collective identity and the narratives that define our history.

Weight: 596g
Dimension: 153 x 196 x 34 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781922545190