Information
Exhibition
2026
10 x 20 x 24 inches (W x L x H)
Matches, found toy, spray paint, digital printing
Graffiti by Ethan Friedberg
In The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction, Walter Benjamin argues that an artwork’s “aura” will disappear through the process of mechanical reproduction.
Much of my practice is built on duplication, with quantity, repetition, and editions. If aura is said to vanish through reproduction, I wonder what if bring it back? Like a spark of fire.
What does aura look like? Perhaps it resembles the visions in “The Little Match Girl” by Hans Christian Andersen. Each time the girl strikes a match, a brief image of warmth, hope, and fulfillment appears, than the flame dies out. In this sense, the artist is like the little match girl. Every new work is a match we light, carrying the hope of healing, recognition, or success. Reality returns when the fire goes out, it can be failure, poverty, disappointment, or doubt.
Aura Match presents aura as something fragile, temporary, and shareable. During the exhibition opening, the “aura matches” will be given away to visitors when I am around, and restocked on the shelf when I leave. They can be lit, used, and consumed like a cigarette, allowing aura to circulate, vanish, and reappear again.