One of the themes throughout the Migration exhibit at the FENIX was the fortification of borders and the closing of frontiers. We’re talking a very contemporary museum. Shilpa Gupta’s “Gate” got a lot of attention.
This heavy metal gate mounted beside a wall suddenly swings shut and slams against the wall every thirty minutes. When we were there (I believe I was standing in line at the fabric bus) a line of school kids were seated in front of the installation and started chanting a countdown before the gate swung and—BOOM!—plaster flew.
I thought a good counterpoint for the experience was a section of the Berlin Wall that was mounted in an adjoining room.
In another room of famous enlarged photographs there were two that told the story of the beginning and the end. The first photo showed a woman holding back her child who is trying to slip through an opening of the Berlin Wall as it’s being constructed. Two armed guards are approaching. The second photo is a silhouette of a young couple kissing on top of the destroyed wall.
Great novel related to immigration, gates, doors: Exit West by Mohsin Hamid