Splendor Solis is the title of an alchemical treatise from 1582 that deals with the exploration of secret knowledge and “the mystery of old philosophers”, the ability to transform cheap metals into gold, and the pursuit of a remedy for all diseases. Literally meaning “The Splendour of the Sun”, the renaissance text presents processes that are both physical-alchemical and spiritual-mystical, bringing together the worlds of cosmology, astronomy, philosophy and magic, that all revolve around the sun as the ultimate source of life.

Shimmering in the dark, the two works ‘Splendor Solis (Sunrise)’ and ‘Splendor Solis (Sunset)’ are installed on two black walls that face each other, and glow with the power of three pure elements, the noble gases neon, helium and argon. Inscribed in the urban aesthetics of the night, the two artificial suns - one is bright yellow and the other sombre red - coexist in the space and build an impossible solar system of their own, offering a burning contemplation about the promise of the sun in a world of rising temperatures.