E R I C    G O T T E S M A N

Pictures at Beit Makan, the gallery where the work was installed, of the creation of boxes in which to collect the promises, the typing and installation of the promises, and photographic workshops held with young people from Madaba, Amman and Aqaba in which they interpreted other people's promises.

This project began as an exploration of the current relevance of historical documents. I began with what is known in English as the "Balfour Declaration" and in Arabic as the "Wa'ed Balfour" or the "Balfour Promise." The document was typed and signed by Arthur Balfour, a British politician in 1917. It declared British support for the creation of Israel in Palestine.

I became interested in the physical and political creation of this document, in its implications and especially in the translation from the English word "declaration" to the Arabic word for "promise." What is the difference? What was lost or gained in that translation? Is there a relationship between this document and letters written by the British between 1914 and 1917 in which other promises were made to Sherif Husayn?

My exploration shifted toward understanding the impact of broken promises on people's lives. I asked people to write their broken promises; promises they broke to others as well as promises others broke to them. I set up a website where contributions could be made anonymously. Local artists helped me make boxes that traveled around Amman to different neighborhoods, school, organizations, homes, etc. I met people of all ages, religions, classes, ethnicities who then slipped their broken promises -- some personal, others political; some trivial, others tragic -- into the boxes.

As I collected more of these promises, I noticed how quickly most people could think of the broken promise they wanted to share. It was often on the tips of their tongues; many people I met seem to carry the past with them. I also noticed some could not or would not participate.

For this installation, I retyped many of these promises, in part because some people wanted to conceal their handwriting. It was a l abored process; I'd never typed in Arabic before. I learned to type Arabic through these broken promises.