Promissory Estoppel – IMA Belltower Façade

2019
Custom architectural video projection
Infinite loop

IMA Belltower Façade
Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts
6 Nov 2019 – 8 Feb 2020

Videography and images: Charlie Hillhouse

Promissory Estoppel is a custom architectural video projection that depicts myriad blank paper ‘banknotes’ falling in slow motion against a black void. As these ‘empty promises’ of currency burst into flame, they leave behind trails of ash and smoke. expressing a sense of economic and social precarity central to the lived experience of late capitalism. While the imagery in the work reflects on money’s literal and symbolic function as a promise of the state, its title makes reference to a legal principle that apportions blame when one party relies on a promise made by the other to their ultimate detriment. In the combination of these elements and references, the work creates opportunity for the viewer to experientially reflect on their position within an economic and political system that paradoxically relies on promise and confidence, but also cycles between boom and bust.

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Promissory Estoppel