GRAY AREA
sand, stones, water collected from rivers, pigment, manhole cover mold
variable dimensions
2020 - ongoing
Gray Area explores the concept of division. Through a complex working process the artwork addresses the relation between language and geopolitics. The starting point of the artist’s reflection on the problem of division is the individualization of two rivers that cross a border between two countries, thus changing their names. The presentation begins to take form through documented excursions to different sites along the river banks where materials and information are collected. The collected materials transform through a meticulous procedure of mixing, molding, drying, shaping and sanding of compositional elements. Playing with the ironic concept of an infertile division, the architectural element chosen to represent this idea is a manhole cover. Gray Area, the artwork, reconfirms its core concept with the introduction of a disrupting element. The inclusion of the uncanny blue pigment, referring to the (mis)perception of a water’s color, forces the viewer to reconsider and reinterpret previously made connections between the artwork and its title, managing to reconfirm itself and continue its conceptual flow. Gray Area is a travelling installation, accumulating new on-site pieces, created from collected materials of local international rivers with every showcasing.
Gray Area is accompanied by a site-specific soundtrack, individually recorded for every showcasing.
This project was realised during a residency period and with the support of Galerija Dobra Vaga and Kino Šiška.
Photo credit / installation view at Dobra Vaga Gallery:
Lana Špiler / Kino Šiška
Photo credit / documentation, collecting materials: Enej Gala, Lara Mejač, Gianluca Cappellazzo