IT MAY SOUND UTOPIAN 

Agile Acceleration“

site specific installation, DISKURS Berlin

curated by Jung Me Chai and Eleonora Frolov

2021 , oil on canvas on cardboard , cardboard objects 

HOW DO WE WANT TO LIVE IN THE FUTURE?

The theme of utopia as an „ideal state of human coexistence constructed in thought“ has preoccupied mankind at every time in its history. In the current pandemic, the question of a positive vision of the future seems particularly pressing. The relationships between work, home and leisure are being rethought and redefined. The clear boundaries that used to exist between them are now melting away and we are questioning the way we have organized our lives so far. 

How can the city change in the future? 

Digitization and artificial intelligence are developing incredibly fast right now, and virtual parallel worlds are increasingly determining our lives. People are already working from home, are not tied to a particular location, and have to travel less. Classic meeting places, such as the city center, are losing their relevance. The living room is slowly transforming into a virtual space and is being replaced by social networks as a place to meet. The new conditions are changing and influencing our consciousness and thus our living space is changing.  

What will the city of the future look like then, will we structure it or will it structure us?

The traditional city embodies the respective power relations and reflects social structures. Even in the Middle Ages, the church was located in the center of the city and was a symbol of power and importance. In the socialist cities, the wide and open axes of the magistrals provided transparency. Endless uniform blocks of flats gave the individual the feeling of unimportance. The urban environment shapes our lives, thinking and behavior; we adapt to it every day, are forced to follow its fixed structures from point A to point B. But what happens if we could free ourselves from the fixed structures of the existing environment (the cities) and choose our place to stay according to our needs or preferences in the world, since we will no longer need the cities in the usual form? Will we then become freer in our thinking, will we possibly lose our tribal instinct, will we no longer need to defend privileges?

In my works I develop architectural visions of the future. In the process, utopian landscapes and spaces emerge, reflections on the future of living spaces and human relationships. The concept of utopia here stands for a space of possibility in human consciousness, in which the crucial questions must always be answered anew: Is there no alternative to the reality in which we live?  What will we do in the future? Do we necessarily have to fail in our ideal conceptions?

For the exhibition I am planning a graphic spatial installation in which I will dissolve the existing boundaries of real space with the help of perspective representation and allow a fictitious world to emerge. 

Exhibition proposal

A graphic space installation is planned, consisting of drawings on canvas cut-outs, which merge into a central image, and are complemented by geometric lines (tape) and sculptural elements. 

The perspective of the drawings and lines is directed towards the viewer, who is positioned in a marked position in front of the entrance door. This allows him a spatial immersion in the emerging fictional world. At the same time, they dissolve the existing space in its previous form and open up new visual and mental spaces.

On view are utopian landscapes. The square spatial bodies that are central here not only represent a basic geometric form; they also stand for a fundamental spatial form of human coexistence. Their floating state can be read as a metaphor for an aspired utopian ideal state. It also represents a mental openness to new possibilities of living together.



SELECTED WORKS

Utopia XXXI, 2021 oil on canvas 150 x 205 cm

Utopia XXXIII, 2021, oil on canvas , 160 x 210 cm

Utopia XXVIII, 2021, oil on canvas , 180 x 245 cm

Utopia XXIX, 2021, oil on canvas , 200 x 150 cm

Utopia XXXII , 2021 oil on canvas, 115 x 145 cm

Utopia XXX, 2021, oil on canvas, 100 x 150cm

SELECTED PAPERWORKS

Utopia # 1836, 75 x 110 cm , ink, marker on paper, 2021

Utopia # 2186 , 75 x 110 cm , ink, marker on paper, 2021

Utopia # 2376 , 80 x 97 cm , ink, marker on paper, 2021