"I don't actually care if I work in natural, urban or other location, most important for me is the uniqueness of the space. I perceive my objects primarily as a sculptural matter, with it's genuine tectonic and proportional qualities, sometimes even as an envelope of the space".
The audiovisual installation „Forest Works“ by the young sculptor Petr Stibral is designed specially for the project space Grey Room in Galerie Školská 28. It presents by means of two video projections, one video on monitor and the soundscape set of suspended kinetic objects, constructed from branches in the middle of Bohemian Forest during the summer.
„When I was working on this remote location, i tried to design the entire scenery in such a way, to suggest an impression that the forest "is behaving" strangely, differently then usually. My intention was to keep the integrity of the style and the materials of sylvan environment, altering it's appearance - the physical process of movement and the entire "stage setting". Large-scale objects are kinetic, reacting to the movement of wind".
Originally Stibral started from the concept of strictly geometrical forms and shapes, transplanted into the forestal environment, hoping that pure geometry of the forms will emanate from the surrounding. As well he wanted to define the visual scenery of the space by implementing different semiotic patterns.
When he returned to the location, new ideas appeared: he became to be more interested in the openness of the form, still determining the sculpture, establishing new assemblage of "symbiotic" objects, integrated with the landscape. It resembles "a bug in the system", an attempt to reshape the construction of the natural materials into the slightly shifted framework. It bears even the mimicry effect, since objects are visible only when they move.
Sculptures are constructed directly for a specific location, being articulated by the scale, shape and the applied materials - conifera branches. Because of the importance of the kinetic moment of the installation Petr Stibral chose the moving image as the documentation output. The scenery was captured partly on 16mm black and white film, transferred to video and in the installation extended by the field audio recording.
Special thanks: Jan Horáček for filming on location, Martin Blažíček for editing and postproduction, Galerie Fotograf for videobeamer.
