Axis Mundi, 2023
3D printed articulated sculpture
PLA, eco resin, metal rods, universal primer, prismatic paint.
H50cm x W45cm x D18cm
Axis Mundi is a speculative artefact, a take on a navigation tool used notoriously during the age of the “discoveries”. A tool that was often appreciated by rulers as a symbol of worldly dominion - The armillary sphere.
The artefact proposes an alternative kind of Navigation, one that takes place between the upper, middle and under worlds, the three planes that constituted the world itself, as understood in some ancient Andean cultures.
Representing a triadic world with the eagle of the sky, the feline of the earth, and the serpent of the underworld this magical artefact could be seeking to unite all three realms.
Is in this union where the navigator would be able to find its centre, its greater truth, surpass uncertainty, doubt, mental fog and finally gain clarity of vision.
The work could suggest that the ultimate discovery could potentially take place then within the self.
Axis Mundi was commissioned by ESCALA collection for its 30th anniversary celebrations.