Habits of Thought consists of two pedestals. On the left pedestal lies a black 3D-printed handgun. On the right pedestal stands a transparent epoxy block in which a 3D-printed bullet appears suspended, frozen mid-flight. Each pedestal carries a textual label in capital black letters: “CAUSE” and “EFFECT” — both printed upside down and enclosed in quotation marks.
The installation explores a fundamental feature of human cognition: the tendency to connect separate elements into cause-and-effect narratives. By presenting two distinct objects without interaction, yet suggestively labeled, the work exposes how meaning is projected by the mind rather than found in the things themselves. The inverted and quoted words visually disrupt this habitual reading, inviting a more critical engagement.
Habits of Thought draws inspiration from the philosophical skepticism of David Hume, who argued that causality is not perceived in the world but constructed by habit. The work subtly questions how belief arises — not from necessity, but from association.