Congo : traces, parcours et souvenirs stages a miniature vil- lage built from clay, plastic, and wire, showcasing various scenes that reflect everyday life. Each space contains ob- jects related to its function. The kitchen is equipped with a cooking pot, a mixer and a mortar; the church with drums and a guitar; the field with hoes, axes and machetes; the gym with balloons and bodybuilding apparatus; and in the school there is a table, a pencil, a notebook, and a puppet drawing. Puppets, connected by a three-metre-long axis, are placed in these different spaces and activated simultaneous- ly by a lever system, enabling them to engage in activities proper to their respective spaces. Justice Kasongo Dibwe calls this cinematic chain of puppets “Cinémionnette” or “CINEMAR”. This mechanism allows the artist to engage in a committed exploration of themes linked to the history of the Democratic Republic of Congo, including colonisation and extractivism. The anecdotes presented also have an educational purpose as Kasongo Dibwe is also a teacher. Through staging the artist wishes to remind spectators of the importance of using their talents, as well as teaching and whosing them about the history of the country and the cultures of the African continent. Finally, this miniature village mounted on a trolley was designed to move around and be used for travelling performance events.

For Way of an Object, Makhacheva selected three artefacts: a painting by russian artist V. M. Vasnetsov, a wooden salt box, and a wedding bracelet. The artist wishes to free these pieces from the Republic of Dagestan, from their inability to function and speak, providing them with legs and arms. Al- though they appear to come to life, the artefacts are none- theless unable to think or speak autonomously. They remain puppets that remind us that the most important question in history is always: “Who has the right to speak?” Moreover, Way of an Object can be seen as an argument for seeking more active roles for objects in local museums Way of an Object was born from the collaboration be- tween Taus Makhacheva and the P. S. Gamzatova Fine Arts Museum of Dagestan. It questions the history of the muse- um’s collections and the concept of the dormant museum object—an object that can no longer tell its own story, that has lost its function and has become a silent object.

Hamayun Bird
Viktor Vasnetsov (1848–1926), 1898

In Slavic mythology, Hamayun is an immortal, prophetic bird with a woman’s head. Hamayun holds a significant spiritual position between the world of life and that of death. She knows everything about the creation of the earth and sky, of gods and heroes, of humans, monsters, birds and ani- mals. She sings divine hymns to women and men, and pre- dicts the future for those who know how to listen to her.

Salt Box
Dagestan, 19th century

Although purchased in a large village market, the salt box is considered a sacred object in the households of the Avars and Andi-Tsez. It’s capable of coming to life in their homes through the patterns engraved on the surfaces, which in this case is a spiral meant to trap evil spirits. This capturing process can be considered as a ‘rebirth’, ‘an opening of the eyes and mouth’—a transformation of the object into a domestic deity which actively ‘participates’ in the life of the home.

Bracelet
Dagestan (village Kubachi), 19th century

This bracelet, created especially for weddings, known as the Kubachi wedding bracelet, is worn by the bride for forty days after the marriage to symbolise the young woman's transition to a new status—that of a wife.