Parallel worlds are nothing unusual in pop culture. Most films and publications stem from the horror genre; portals into other worlds and dimensions usually portend nothing good for those who open them. One thinks of the "Upside Down" or shadow world in Stranger Things. Clive Barker’s Hellraiser also plays with the idea that there are portals which can be opened with the Lemarchand configuration cube—with very detrimental consequences for the curious adventurer.
The Oscar-winning film Everything Everywhere All at Once creates exceptionally entertaining chaos through constant dimensional leaps. But would you desperately want to break open the walled-up door in the dark basement of the abandoned house in the middle of a forest?
The project Kcymaerxthaere by the American author, artist, filmmaker, and designer Eames Demetrios, born in 1962, is significantly more peaceful yet no less original. Kcymaerxthaere is a parallel universe that overlaps and interacts with our linear reality. Demetrios seeks out special, real places across the entire globe that have been created through the action and interaction of the inhabitants of Kcymaerxthaere. These spots, often extraordinary and art-infused jewels, are like interdimensional outgrowths of the other world that have embellished the here and now.
Eames Demetrios marks these places with uniform, large metal plaques. On these, the imaginary history of the location is recounted in the local language and in English. The project spans the entire globe; it certainly doesn't hurt that Eames Demetrios is the heir and custodian of Charles and Ray Eames’ design classics and is thus equipped with the necessary resources.
It stands to reason that the original mini-republic of Užupis in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius is the site of a story from Kcymaerxthaere. Created by artists, this republic features its own government and constitution, a mermaid (or rather, river-maid), as well as a backpacker Jesus and trumpet angle—and is nothing less than the City of Justice within the Kcymaerxthaere cosmos.
The local commemorative plaque describes a fantastic tale about a boy from the sea who, after ignoring warnings, was washed away by a giant wave. On his journey, he encountered the persecuted Eliala Mei-Ning, whose unique song created a city of justice around her and protected her from her pursuers. Eventually, at dawn, Eliala moved on to her next refuge, while the boy still had a long way home ahead of him.
Moreover, the fiction of Kcymaerxthaere is a guarantee for a beautiful and special place at the spot where the portal signs are mounted. Or perhaps it is like the wonderful science fiction satire Bugonia by Yorgos Lanthimos: perhaps Eames Demetrios is the only one in this world who knows the truth.
It would be a good explanation for why there are such beautiful places in this world…… and so terrible ones.