The X-files [Registry of the Nineties]

Salatoimikud [Üheksakümnendate kartoteek] / The X-Files [Registry of the Nineties] is an exhibition at the Kumu Art Museum of Estonia that tries to delve into the more cryptic, overshadowed and lost aspects of 1990s Estonian contemporary art scene.

Graphic design makes a reference to 1990s disruptive design, emerging from post-rock subcultural scenes. Particularly to David Carson’s (in)famous interview with Bryan Ferry from 1994 and to Estonia’s cult post-rock band Metro Luminal’s cassette sleeve from 1995, both of which replaced the readable text with cryptic digital pictograms. In the case of X-Files, the Wingdings dingbat font is used – as it is an all-time favorite of the paranoia and conspiracy theoreticians. Exhibition headline and chapter names are revealed both in Latin alphabet and in dingbats; the entrance’s wall exposes the pictogram-pattern which is actually a fully encrypted essay, amiable to be read by anyone who can decipher it.*

*Writing on the wall: Hasso Krull, The Culture of Interruption (Katkestuse kultuur), 1996.