Haroon Mirza, Illuminated Revelations in a Cave (Solar Cell Circuit Composition 29), 2023

2023

Medium

Solar cells, polyurethane resin, copper tape, electrical wire, magnet wire, LED tape, miniature painting by Brishna Amin Khan, cables on glass, and anodized aluminum

Dimensions

146.8 × 146.8 cm

Status

In Gallery Collection

Collect24 Art ID

C24-156227

Haroon Mirza's "Solar Cell Circuit Compositions" are composed of solar cells and copper strips to form a geometric mandala with a miniature painting integrated in the center. Mirza cooperated with the miniaturist Brishna Amin Khan from Lahore in Pakistan, who translates Mirza's descriptions of various scenes into traditional miniature paintings. An LED strip is inserted above the painting, which is linked to the solar cells via the energy circuit of the copper strips, which in turn influence the intensity of the LEDs depending on the ambient light. Mirza works on the glass surface with semi-transparent foils and polyurethane resin, giving a water-like apparence. In this series of works, Mirza combines traditional painting and mandalas as meditation objects with technoid elements, and through the alienation creates a contemporary transformation that links to phenomena embedded in myth and shamanistic rituals and brings together references between technology, nature and consciousness. The painting of "lluminated Revelations in a Cave (Solar Cell Circuit Composition 29)" (2023) shows a woman sitting in a cave with her eyes closed and a bubble with a spherical network of geometric shapes floating above her head. This was based on the description following the ingestion of dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a naturally occurring, hallucinogenic substance that can also be released by the body itself in complete darkness. It has an intense effect on the visual cortex of the brain and leads to a pronounced change in visual experience and is sometimes used in shamanistic rituals.