Dafne Ortiz Salazar

“The 114” Incantation Bowl  

Sculpture and poetry. Papier-mâché, enamel, coffee, acrylic paint. 100 cm diameter, 60 cm hight.

A project by Dafne Ortiz Salazar, In collaboration with Nathalie Kertesz, Ionah Nour, Dídac Pintor Codina

“The 114” Incantation Bowl requests the return of the 114 desecrated bodies currently held in the archive of the Museum of History of Barcelona, so they may be laid to rest in the Montjuic Jewish cemetery again. It is an oversized papier-mâché version of the 5th and 7th centuries Aramaic bowls that were typically used to address an illness or unjust situation, often attributed to demonic agents.

Part of the poem “4 canciones de Miriam”, written by Ionah Nour, has been written on the bowl as Aramaic poems or legal texts used to be inscribed. The only names known from the Montjuic Jewish Cemetery have also been inscribed, by Dídac Pintor Codina. Central drawing by Dafne Ortiz Salazar, papier-maché sculpture by Dafne Ortiz Salazar and Nathalie Kertesz.