LOTSMUNT // COIN OF FATE
Messing engraved
In the process of euthanasia people are often rendered quite powerless. In theory Euthanasia is about making your own choices and choosing your own path, but in practice it is the doctors that have to weigh the worth of a live. The patient is thus dependent on the rules and the empathy of others. This feeling of powerlessness, the effects of interpretation and what appears to be a game of chance, are captured in the coin of fate.
Duality plays an important role in this object. Someone with a wish for euthanasia might see live as a cage, but he who has a will to live might see death as a prison. Who gets to decide, heads or tails?
FAIRYTALES OF HAPPILY EVER AFTER?
A book of 4 English fairytales, plotter printed, written and illustrated by Juliette Huygen, 75 pages, hardcover.
TRANENMETER // TEARCATCHER
Free blown glass
One of the conditions for euthanasia is unbearable suffering. In current cases this is mostly measured on a psychical scale, but the emotional scale is often disregarded. Is pain of the heart and mind not considered true pain? Who is to decide which suffering is unbearable? Can inner feelings be measured and if so, is the volume of tears we shed a gauge for our grief?
3D printed version, polyester, glass, magnetic needle
MECHANISCHE AFFECTIE // MECHANICAL AFFECTION
Powdercoated steel, POM/nylon gears, leather
Oftentimes the difficulty with euthanasia lies with the next-of-kin. They are often the ones who try desperately to cling to the live of their loved one. What happens when a man is barely more than a physical presence? When are all the efforts of treatments, medicine, doctors and constant postponing no longer equal to the life that is regained? All this machine does is simulate a minor caress, a mechanical affection. When comes the time you dare to let go?
MOREEL KOMPAS // MORAL COMPASS
Pearwood, laser engraving, glass, magnetic needle, golden pocket watch chain
What is it that makes us fear euthanasia so? We lose ourselves in rules and regulations and fear to give our emotions a say in the matter. Is our conscience let by rationality or by the heart? Often in difficult times the conscience is treated as an ever-indeclinable force, unchangeable. Does not every situation require a different state of mind? This compass lets you choose your moral north, a conscience you choose to follow. Is your conscience a rational thing or a matter of the heart and if you have made your choice, will you forever meekly follow?
© Copyright Juliette Huygen
