Project Proposal: The Clairvaux Project Target Work: Chalice of Abbot Suger (Widener Collection, 1942.9.20) Format: 30-Second Vertical Video (9:16)
Video Structure (30 Seconds)
00:00–00:08 | Scene 1 Projection
The vertical frame opens in near darkness. Through a restrained digital-projection aesthetic, the chalice slowly emerges. Its sardonyx cup pulses with a deep interior red glow, suggesting latent presence rather than activation.
Sound: A low-volume intonation of the Kyrie chant (public domain), reverberant and spatially distant.
00:08–00:18 | Scene 2 Elevation
A figure wearing neutral, historically inspired liturgical vestments enters the frame. The figure lifts the chalice in the familiar gesture of Eucharistic elevation. The camera emphasizes hands and vessel only. The action remains incomplete—no words spoken, no rite concluded.
The figure functions as an anonymous archetype of the Custodian: a temporary bearer rather than an owner. The viewer is held in suspension at the threshold of distribution.
00:18–00:30 | Scene 3 Conversion
The image dissolves. The chalice’s gold filigree appears to unravel, resolving into white architectural linework. This linework coheres into the floor plan of a contemporary transitional housing unit.
A minimal ticker appears:
HYPOTHETICAL VALUE $250,000,000 → ESTIMATED SHELTER EQUIVALENT: 4,500 NIGHTS
The final image is a modern front door.
Sound: The chant cuts abruptly to the dry, domestic sound of a key turning in a lock and a deadbolt sliding into place.