Danger comes from the sky. Hope too. In the Middle Ages, celestial phenomena fed the most varied fantasies. Is it different today? The signs coming from the sky are constantly changing their meaning: we perceive them differently, we interpret them differently. Astronomy or astrology, omen or physical law, magic or science, everything is intermingled. The streaks of light can be kites or witches, UFOs or drones. Carl Jung talks about a patient's dream where a huge buzzing spider pierces across the sky. Who knows if, in the past, she hasn’t seen our current drones, remotely piloted war machines with tentacular arms that echo the sad present?
Fascinated by the issue of celeste phenomena, Abdelkader Benchamma followed the hearing of the US Congress on UFOs in November 2024. The recovered objects raised insoluble questions about their origin. Scientists and military officers followed one another, coldly giving their testimonies to elected officials from everywhere. Science fiction meets reality and conspiratorial theories turned plausible in an unsettling – or fascinating – turn of events. Was the United States preparing for a new enemy or a new market? Everything accelerates regarding our relationship with the sky. Exoplanets, non- existent thirty years ago, are now counted by millions. The sky becomes habitable, colonized by both reason and imagination. Fantasies and hypotheses unfold without limit. Are we so different from our ancestors when they read the omens?
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