Extract of Paradise

Extract of Paradise consists of a cluster of large, industrial dough mixers that rumble and bellow as they mix date syrup (a sweet, sticky substance akin to black honey), their aural emissions amplified and projected through antenna-like standing microphones. Creating a continuous industrial choral, this project was shaped by the geopolitical and economic specificities of the eminently modern Islamic world, especially the Arab Gulf. In the work, the intriguing sonic value of the traditional machines creates something like the sound of a churning, ‚labouring economy’. The date syrup, a representative commercial product of the region that reflects its economic and historical values, played an organic role in the work, generating a strong visual and olfactory presence throughout the space.

The mixers work continuously against a grid of voice-range speakers set into a standing panel, featuring the sound of the adhan, the Muslim call to prayer, and other Ramadan sermons, both recorded in a traditional neighbourhood in Cairo and some other places in Egypt.

The machines’ shape and mechanisms play a metaphorical and meditative role during the sermons, which drags people's spirits into continuous Sufi dance-like rotations. The uninterrupted, uniform mixing process also symbolises the repetitiveness of the activity of prayer. A spigot fixed to the mixers enables the syrup to be drawn off. Sweet Paradise...