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The Oracle
Project type
Live Performance and Custom-Coded Installation
Date
2023
Location
Sett Studios, Edinburgh, UK
The Oracle is an interactive performance piece built in Max/MSP — a contemporary reimagining of divination for the digital age. At its core, the system generates a random location within the Kindle edition of MArchive by Alexis Pauline Gumbs, from which a passage is delivered aloud.
Gumbs envisioned MArchive not only as a book but also as an oracle — a text to be consulted for reflection, guidance, and transformation. In performance, the selected passage is interpreted in relation to a question posed by the audience, opening up unexpected connections and moments of poetic insight.
Blending custom code, intuition, and literary resonance, The Oracle invites participants into a modern ritual of seeking. It was first presented at Folklore Market, Sett Studios, Edinburgh, in September 2023.
