Unravelling Frequencies

Vile Blood

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The Execution Pillars of Vicosoprano

The village of Vicosoprano (Bregaglia Valley) in the Swiss Alps is one of the few places in Switzerland where infrastructure relating to the persecution of witches is preserved in the public space.

Stigma diabolicum

Torture and the search for the stigma diabolicum - the devil‘s mark - were among the subjects the artist spoke about with Daniele Papacella, Prof. Claudia Opitz-Belakhal, Prof. Brugger and Dr. Gloor. A replica of the instrument used to identify the devil‘s mark, and thus to dehumanize the accused, is included in the installation.

„...von Excrementen die sie Menstruum heissen / dem kein Gifft auff Erden gleichen mag / schädlicher vnd strenger (...) da nichts schädlichers innen ist / als diß Excrement der Frawen.“
> *„...from excrements which they call menstruum / which no poison on earth can resemble / more harmful and more severe (...) since there is nothing more harmful / than this blood excrement of women.“

Opus Paramirum, Liber quartus de Matrice, 1531.
Paracelsus, physician and philosopher

„...daß das Gift im Blute zirkuliert, ist also sichergestellt (...) Diese Tatsache ist deswegen interessant, weil wir damit rechnen müssen, daß das Gift in alle Organe gelangen kann; interessanterweise wird es dann mit dem Schweiße in der Haut ausgeschieden.“*
*„...it is therefore confirmed that the poison circulates in the blood (...) This fact is interesting because we have to assume that the poison can get into all organs; Interestingly enough, it is then excreted with sweat through the skin.“

Das Menstruationsgift, Wiener Klinische Wochernschrift, 1920
Prof. Dr. Béla Schick, Immunologist

Toxic Blood

The alleged toxic properties of menstrual blood inspired a self-experiment by the artist and was the subject of the conversations with Prof. Claudia Opitz-Belakhal, Prof. Peter Brugger and Dr. Andrea Gloor.

Archive-in-Process

The artist collected seismic audio and organic materials during her in situ research at various locations in Switzerland where bloodshed linked to the persecutions of alleged witches took place. The so far assembled archive is presented as an installation consisting of this website, which includes interviews and various research material, the Infrasonic Soundscape and the sculpture series The Archaeology of Impurity. The seismic audio recordings are featured in the Infrasonic Soundscape and, in separate compositions, in the interviews.

The slideshow shows (1) a latex sculpture featuring the replica of Guglia, the torture instrument used to identify the devil in the blood; (2) dungeon wall where people accused of witchcraft were hung by their arms; (3) torture chamber (both in the Pretorio Vicosoprano); (4) samples of soil and organic matter collected at the site of the execution pillars in Vicosoprano; (5) view from the Aula Magna where the witch trials took place; (6) torture pillar (both in the Château de Chillon); (7) the towers of the Basel Minster, viewed from the artist's studio; (8) the hill and leisure area Le Guintzet in Fribourg, where hundreds of people accused of witchcraft were executed; (9) the artist holding one of the vials containing her 'menotoxic' blood.

Archaeology of Impurity

Ongoing series that consists of various organic materials linked to the ancient superstition that female blood is toxic and vile. This persistent belief was not only widespread in folklore, it was also purported by the Swiss Renaissance physician Paracelsus and scientifically researched, but never proven, until the early 1980s. The alleged toxic property of menstrual blood was thought to be a gas that circulates in the whole body during a woman's period, a toxin so powerful that it could be transmitted by touch. Latex shares this alleged main toxic component, which made it the ideal canvas to preserve various organic materials that are linked to the so-called impurity of female blood, including 'menotoxic' blood drawn from the artist's arm during her menstruation, as well as plants and soils collected at locations in Switzerland where alleged witches were executed. The twilight of the installation mixing UV light with daylight underscores the superstitions of these truly toxic beliefs. Credit photos: Installation views of Swiss Art Awards 2024

Infrasonic Soundscape

Wooden floor activated by an infrasonic installation that mainly consists of inaudible frequencies below 20 Hz. The installation is based on seismic audio recordings collected at several places in Switzerland where the blood of people accused of witchcraft was spilled - such as torture chambers, execution sites or prison cells. Inspired by neuroscientific studies that aim to create 'haunting' experiences (i.e. the feeling of an invisible presence in the room) in test subjects exposed to frequencies around 7 Hz, the artist makes use of specialized speakers to transmit otherwise inaudible sound waves via vibrations through the wooden floor as a means to let the many forgotten victims of Switzerland's witch persecutions 'haunt' the room. The subtle vibrations serve as a narrative device addressing this sinister and still unresolved chapter of Switzerland's past. The installation is complemented by headphones which play the audible spectrum of these in-situ recordings. Credit photo: Installation view of Swiss Art Awards 2024.


Infrasonic Soundscape, extract