Programmoire engages with a mathematical artefact, the magic square, applying to its inherently computational logic a sorting algorithm that parses through all its permutations. The work is also informed by the tradition of making grimoires, taking the practice of recording elements, recipes and rituals and augmenting it into a programmable processes. Programmoire finds magic squares within the possibility space of number sequences, and studies their structure across one, two and three dimensions to record the emergent paths, patterns and forms within them.

The Work Station is an installation creating a speculative workstation for studying magic squares. A printed portion of Programmoire sits on the table, while the wall is turned into a control panel of sorts. The screen panel displays the live programme, running through the number sequences and interfacing with a small printer which outputs the corresponding sigils, while smaller screen displays a 3D rendition of the sigils.

The project explores the intentional, procedural and executable within magic, to discuss the practice as one that has been traditionally assigned mystical, unpredictable and temperamental attributes, and the implied gendered and hierarchical binaries within those associations.