The Grand Hotel Abyss, David Bather Woods

Part of Eileen John’s Dinner Party installation, The Grand Hotel Abyss is a philosophical place setting inspired by Georg Lukács’s critique of Arthur Schopenhauer. Lukács likened Schopenhauer’s pessimism to a luxury hotel perched above the void—offering comfort without confronting the abyss. Created by David Bather Woods, a Warwick philosopher whose research centres on Schopenhauer, the piece invites viewers to peer into darkness through a viewing hole. Flick a switch, and Schopenhauer’s face emerges from the depths—echoing Nietzsche’s warning: “If you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss gazes into you.”