Responding to Sam Kariotis: 1000 Lizards

By Kannitha Lim

Sam Kariotis: 1000 Lizards

Glimpse Art Space June 28th - July 26th 2023

Looking at this piece I am transported back to

long velvet robes hanging in dusty vestry

cupboards. Studying the display for the right fit

and tying it around me with twisted golden thread

knotted with clumpy tassels.

Light shining through small stain glass windows,

dark shadowy corners. The sacred space where

packets of crisp round wafers hide in boxes aside

the bottles of red wine soon to give off a pungent

metallic smell as liquid hits brass goblet.

Sometimes poured before hand if the wine stores

are low. The cup sits like an old man with a

delicate handkerchief on its head having a

preservice snooze. My little fingers poke and prod

each wafer as I arrange them on the metal plate. I

imagine vast medieval banquets would serve such

plates where ladies wore veils under shinny brass

headbands. I wonder if I put the plate atop my

head and the white muslin over that would it feel

similar? I better not. When there are no wafers we

use bread, crusty and round. I wonder if the loafs

from the bakery would have the same affect,

sliced or whole?

Smoke and vestments. The little ball cage holds

the incense. When lit I see the little dragon’seye

burning bright as smoke billows from the caves

within. Now looking back I wonder if we were all

exposed to second hand smoke like the cigarettes

in Sam Kariotis’ latest digital collage, 1000 Lizards,

currently on display at Glimpse Art Space.

In 1000 Lizards we enter a conversation between

four beings floating among the cosmos. Three

human beings share this conversation without any

real connection as indicated by the absence of eye

contact as evident by revealing their line of sight

with laser like clarity. The figure in the bottom

right foreground brakes bread in a gesture of

communion. His check is marked by digits, 333. If

the devil is known by the digits 666, we can

presume this figure holds half of that evil possibly

showing all humans hold both good and evil so

thereby dividing the total in half or showing this

human may not be pure evil but certainly not

innocent leading to an agenda of deception and

manipulation. In the centre we find a curios being,

half goat, half octopus, whose tentacles reach out

to the various humans and a portal like rectangle

tethered to one with a thick green chain. Eight

cigarettes are perched atop the portal.

It is as if Goat-opus has entered a world were

there is no real connection. Does he stay to help

connect these humans thus leading to an anxiety

driven chain-smoking habit wearing an expression

of startled horror or does he slip back through the

portal which appears to be a much more peaceful

environment to exist in.

If the portal represents an afterlife thus tethering

man to the religious affiliations of the bread

breaking human. Is it indeed a place or a notion

held by the man chained to it. Otherwise is it a

portal allowing Goat-opus access to this reality, to

enter and exit at whim. Perhaps a mediative state

to periodically escape too. Or is it a more finite

exit? Evoking the question is this portal a

representation of death, loss or suicide? What is a

Goat-opus to do?