Lars Cuzner’s project “From What You Can’t Protect Yourself” is a provocative and ongoing performative work that explores the complex dynamics of religious proselytization and belief systems. This project presents an intriguing paradox by featuring a non-believer engaging in the act of converting individuals to Christianity.

Conceptual Framework

The project operates within a conceptual framework that challenges traditional notions of religious conversion and authenticity. By having a non-believer as the proselytizer, Cuzner creates a tension between the message being conveyed and the messenger’s own lack of faith. This approach raises critical questions about the nature of belief, the power of persuasion, and the role of sincerity in religious discourse.

Performance as Critique

Cuzner’s work can be interpreted as a critique of religious evangelism and the mechanisms of conversion. By embodying the role of a proselytizer without genuine belief, the artist highlights the potential disconnect between the act of spreading religious doctrine and personal conviction. This performance serves to deconstruct the process of religious conversion, exposing its potential for manipulation and questioning the authenticity of religious experiences induced through external persuasion.

Ethical Considerations

The project inevitably raises ethical questions regarding the manipulation of individuals’ beliefs and the potential psychological impact on participants. By engaging in a performance that aims to convert people to Christianity while knowingly lacking genuine faith, Cuzner treads a fine line between artistic expression and ethical responsibility.

Context within Cuzner’s Oeuvre

“From What You Can’t Protect Yourself” aligns with Cuzner’s broader artistic practice, which often involves provocative and socially engaged works. This project shares thematic connections with his previous collaborations, such as the controversial “European Attraction Limited” (2014), co-created with Mohamed Ali Fadlabi, which recreated a historical human zoo to confront Norway’s colonial past.

Conclusion

Lars Cuzner’s “From What You Can’t Protect Yourself” stands as a challenging and thought-provoking exploration of faith, authenticity, and the power dynamics inherent in religious conversion. By positioning a non-believer as the agent of proselytization, the project invites critical reflection on the nature of belief systems and the complex interplay between personal conviction and external influence in shaping religious identities.

“We thought capitalism would create the conditions for perfect happiness by destroying every sense of belonging, by the nomadism of the rootless individual that results from the “deterritorialization” intrinsic to the development of the global economy. Now we have reached the apex of globalization and capitalist “deterritorialization,” and everything is returning: the Family, the nation state, religious fundamentalism. Everything is returning—but in a perverted, reactionary, conservative way, as the philosopher predicted.”

Christian Marazzi

blindcarboncopy.org

Blind Carbon Copy presents 3 days of events Curators Go to The Bar

Participants: Joachim Hamou ^(DK), John W. Fail ^(EE/USA), Maria Arusoo ^(EE), Lars Cuzner ^(NO), Institut for Colour ^(NO), Maija Rudovska ^(LV) and Juste Kostikovaite ^(LT).

Curators: Juste Kostikovaite ^(LT) and Maija Rudovska ^(LV)