Benandanti, člani kmečkega kulta iz srednjeveške Furlanije, so s svojimi prepričanji močno zmedli Rimskokatoliško cerkev v času inkvizicije. Delovali so v nezavednem, sanjskem svetu, ki je bil materialno izven dosega cerkve in se tako nekaj desetletij uspešno izogibali nasilnemu preganjanju, ki so ga bila deležna druga poganska gibanja. Grajenje lastnega fiktivnega domišljijskega sveta je zanje postal način kljubovanja obstoječim družbenim konstruktom.
Celeste Sanja njihovo skrivnostno zgodbo uporabi kot razmislek o načinih delovanja in orodjih upora v sodobnem tehnološko odvisnem svetu. Na interaktivni spletni strani zastave razkrivajo koščke benandantske kozmologije – pričevanja o sanjskih bitkah s čarovnicami, obrede ob kresnih nočeh, uriniranje v vinske sode, pogovore z duhovi v odsevih vodnjaka. Preko razkritja teh zgodb se vleče tanka vzporednica s sodobnimi taktikami grajenja mitologije na spletu – mehanizmi fikcije, ki ustvarjajo mikrosvetove, nedostopne in neberljive zunanjim akterjem. Umetnica raziskuje taktike zavajanja na spletu kot odgovor na logiko hegemonije medijskih platform ter izpostavlja teorijo o skrivnih navezah, ki so bile vedno pomemben element okultnih, odporniških gibanj – od zametkov anarhije v 19. stoletju, izraza drag kulture do postkolonialne teorije o neprozornosti zatiranih narodov in manjšin v odgovor zahodnjaškemu ultimatu transparentnosti.
Sabotažne intervencije in kultske naveze se tako počasi izrisujejo v zobovje spletnega nadzornega kolesja. Na isti način kot so Benandanti s sanjarjenjem o zastavah in grajenjem svoje lastne mikro-identitete kljubovali fevdalnemu redu, delo postavlja pod vprašaj možnost prekinitve obstoječih sistemov. V času, ko platformski nadzor in algoritmi oblikujejo našo realnost, postajajo grajenje skupnosti, skrivnostnost, konspiratorna gibanja, rituali in fikcija nova orodja za soočanje z trenutnimi perečimi problematikami. Interna internetna govorica AI slopov, memov in algospeaka so postala sodobna orodja zavajanja, ki pod navidezno prozornostjo skrivajo skupne pomene in omogočajo vzporedne svetove, skrivno komunikacijo in ustvarjanje pomena med uporabniki s sorodnimi prepričanji in ideologijami.
O kakšnih zastavah so sanjali Benandanti? Delo deluje kot znanstvena fantastika iz preteklosti, pri čemer zastave iz benandantskega časa vzpostavljajo občutek skrivnostnost in odtujenost, hkrati pa gledalcu omogočajo grajenje lastnih pomenov. Zgodovinska rekonstrukcija tako postane orodje za razmislek o sodobnih družbenih konstruktih – ostaline iz preteklosti opozarjajo na možnost prekinitve obstoječih sistemov in izpostavljajo mostove med proto-kapitalističnim in sedanjim, post-kapitalističnim kaosom.
Celeste Sanja (1998) je transdisciplinarna umetnica in 3D oblikovalka, ki uživa v pisanju. Prihaja iz Slovenije, vendar trenutno živi v Helsinkih, kjer na Univerzi Aalto opravlja magistrski študij na Oddelku za nove medije. Njeno delo in raziskovanje se osredotočata na skrivne družbe in tehnične objekte, pri čemer orodja obravnava kot žive prisotnosti, ki sodelujejo v družbenih in materialnih odnosih. Njene performativne prakse pogosto vključujejo lutkarstvo, performans, animacijo in lastnoročno izdelane instrumente.
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The Benandanti, members of a peasant cult from medieval Friuli, greatly unsettled the Roman Catholic Church with their beliefs during the Inquisition. They operated in an unconscious, dreamlike world that was materially beyond the church’s reach, and thus successfully avoided for several decades the violent persecution suffered by other pagan movements. For them, constructing their own fictional, imaginary world became a means of defying existing social constructs.
Celeste Sanja uses their mysterious story as a reflection on modes of action and tools of resistance in today’s technology-dependent world. On an interactive website, they reveal fragments of Benandante cosmology – accounts of dream battles with witches, rituals on Midsummer’s Eve, urinating into wine barrels, and conversations with spirits in the reflections of a well. Through the revelation of these stories, a subtle parallel is drawn with contemporary tactics for constructing mythology online – mechanisms of fiction that create microworlds inaccessible and unreadable to outside actors. The artist explores tactics of online deception as a response to the logic of media platform hegemony and highlights the theory of secret societies, which have always been an important element of occult and resistance movements – from the early stirrings of anarchy in the 19th century, to the “drag culture” movement, to postcolonial theories of opacity among oppressed nations and minorities in response to the Western ultimatum of transparency.
Sabotage interventions and cult-like alliances are thus slowly taking shape within the cogs of the online surveillance machine. Just as the Benandanti defied the feudal order by dreaming of flags and constructing their own micro-identities, the work calls into question the possibility of disrupting existing systems. At a time when platform surveillance and algorithms shape our reality, community-building, secrecy, conspiratorial movements, rituals, and fiction are becoming new tools for confronting today’s pressing issues. Internal internet jargon, such as AI slop, memes, and algospeak has become a modern tool of deception that, beneath a veneer of transparency, conceals shared meanings and enables parallel worlds, secret communication, and the creation of meaning among users with similar beliefs and ideologies.
What kind of flags did the Benandanti dream of? The work functions as science fiction from the past, with objects from the Benandanti era evoking a sense of mystery and alienation, while at the same time allowing the viewer to construct their own meanings. Historical reconstruction thus becomes a tool for reflecting on contemporary social constructs – remnants from the past point to the possibility of disrupting existing systems and highlight the bridges between proto-capitalist and present-day, post-capitalist chaos.
Celeste Sanja (1998) is a transdisciplinary artist and 3D generalist who enjoys writing. Originally from Slovenia, she is currently based in Helsinki, pursuing a master's degree in New Media at Aalto University. Her work and research focus on secret societies and technical objects, approaching tools as living presences that participate in social and material relations. Her practice often incorporates puppetry, performance, animation and self-made instruments.
