The End of the Affair

The comparatively sleepy Vulcano last let

rip in 1890, yet the Fossa crater on its north

eastern edge still belches enough smoke

to give the entire island an enveloping sul-

phurous smell. Michael Anastassiades’s

models of the three volcanoes are made

from Basaltina, a lavic stone from Viterbo

in central Italy, that is likewise a product

of the country’s geological position (as are

the earthquakes of recent months and all

their very sad consequences).

Michael’s volcanoes were inspired by

Japanese suiseki or ‘water rocks’, stones

that are treasured for their resemblance

to miniaturised landscapes. Artefacts of

this sort were first imported from China in

the 6th century, but since then a specific

Japanese tradition has emerged. Prefer-

ring more muted colours and less dramat-

ic forms than their Chinese counterparts,

the Japanese rock enthusiasts derived an

intricate system of classification and quali-

tative hierarchy. Suiseki are celebrated for

having been found not made, but a de-

gree of artifice is inherent in the process of

harvesting them from their surroundings.

Vesuvio: 40.8224° N, 14.4289° E

Vulcano: 38.3946° N, 14.9706° E

Stromboli: 38.7925° N, 15.2149° E

Italy’s volcanism derives from its proximi-

ty to the boundary between the Eurasian

and African tectonic plates. Vesuvio, Vul-

cano and Stromboli are all defined as ac-

tive volcanoes. While Vesuvio is the only

such on mainland Europe, the island of

Stromboli claims the distinction of being

the world’s most vigorous, having erupted

almost constantly for the past 2000 years.

Michael’s pieces are constructed from start

to finish, yet are close in type and spirit to

‘distant mountain stones’, rocks that repre-

sent the view of a peak in the landscape.

In both the Japanese and the Chinese

schools, there is an indissoluble relation-

ship between the actual rocks and their

two-dimensional representation in prints,

paintings and drawings. The stones are

both object and image. This duality is

made clear in their presentation, be it in

conjunction with a bonsai tree, in a sur-

round of water or raked sand, or on a

wooden stand. Responding to this tradi-

tion, Michael has set his volcanoes on plat-

forms of black Marquina marble (a stone

from the Basque Country) that extend just

beyond the edge of the solid lava. Pictured

for this catalogue atop unfinished slabs of

marble, the volcanos appear to be in an

approximation of the formal settings that

are constructed by suiseki enthusiasts.

Once photographed, the conjunction be-

tween the three distinct stones and their

various forms and finishes becomes form

of collage.

As evidence of violent encounters between

the earth’s tectonic plates, volcanoes make

ready metaphors for various geopoliti-

cal crises. Determining the outlines of the

models according to data derived from

three-dimensional digital maps, Michael

exaggerated each of their heights twofold.

The volcanoes are not as they are, but

rather as they appear from their respective

bases. While bulking up statistics in order

to bring them in line with perception is a

dangerous practice in relations to politics,

in the context making of decorative mod-

els it’s obviously not such a problem. That

said, the proportions of the ‘The End of

the Affair’ could be seen as an allegory of

‘fake news’.

Emily King