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Coyote Bee Eye Kill Hole Sequence, 2016
Ceramic dishes painted with slip, painted metal tubes and cotton string
Courtesy of the artist and kurimanzutto
Castillo Deball problematizes archaeological narratives and reveals the role of the imagination in its attempts to recreate the history of an object. This set of ceramic pieces is based on the bowls and jars of the Mogollon culture, specifically the Mimbres tradition, which flourished over one thousand years ago in the territory currently occupied by the U.S. state of New Mexico. Most of these bowls have been found at burial sites, placed over the face of the deceased. Many were perforated with circular orifices at the bottom. Although the meaning of these “kill holes” is unknown, it’s believed that, by destroying their functionality, these bowls allowed for a conduit to the spirit world.
When these ceramics were discovered, there was no precedent that could explain the holes, which differentiated them from other fragments and broken pieces. As a result, hundreds of these pieces were “restored.” It wasn’t until more of these objects were dug up that the “kill holes” began to be understood as a ritual act. Castillo Deball invites us to reflect on the suppositions we make when interpreting these types of artifacts and how we tend to imagine the past in accordance with the values and expectations of the present.
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