translated and summarized by: Liz Wollner-Grandville,
240314: Galerie Andreas Huber - Mona Vatamanu & Florin Tudor – 46°19´41´´N 23°12´44´´E Geamana
Galerie Andreas Huber
Mona Vatamanu & Florin Tudor – 46°19´41´´N
23°12´44´´E Geamana
14.03.2014 – 10.05.2014
Dante's limbo
Susanne Rohringer
In a darkened main room of the gallery, the two artists, Mona V?t?manu and Florin Tudor present a film about the Romanian mining area of Rosia Montana, where copper has been mined since the 70's. Gold was also discovered here in pre-Roman times. Today's copper mining takes the form of flooding the area, whereby copper mixes with chalk and is separated by water. If one looks at the 8 mm and 16 mm films of both artists, one gets the impression of apocalyptic scenery in which the stream of colours alternate with one another. A brown mixture of sandy colour flows into a red stream of colour. In between, bright "white water" flows out of a pump. The film view of this desolate area, devoid of people, paints a picture of destruction. The slowly flowing / moving pictures are accompanied by a reading of the "Secret Revelation According To John" and texts by Salvador Allende. These texts can only be comprehended by people who understand Romanian. For other recipients, this non-comprehension emphasizes the disconcerting character of the portrayed limbo even more strongly.
The two artists, who have named the exhibition after the geographic co-ordinates of the mining area – 46°19´41´´N 23°12´44´´E – try to portray the insanity of this destructive project in comparison to all the colourful beauty. Originally, the copper mining started in a small area. The greed for more drove the business forward so that the people in Valea Sesil and Geamana had to leave their villages and move. Sometimes the remains of a wooden fence or a roof construction jut out of the water. The destruction of the villages progresses relentlessly and the mining area eats into the land. V?t?manu and Tudor have succeeded in documenting and interpreting the ambivalence of this destructive project in a very graceful way.
In a bright room in the gallery, pieces of scaffolding lie on the floor. They are covered by sheeting and appear to have pieces of earth on them. Even if the intention is otherwise, the discovery of the mass graves in the Balkans (i.e. Srebrenica) come to ones mind. The scaffolding looks like stretchers on the floor, carrying the last remnants of humanity. In creating this work, the artists had a dream of another artist before their eyes.
The two artists tell a story which concerns experiences and events of the communist and post-communist time. Through this, they substantiate a feeling for collective breakpoints and places of remembrance and, in their own way, make these speak.
Galerie Andreas Huber
1040 Vienna, Schleifmuehlgasse 6-8
Tel: +43-1-586 02 37
Fax: +43-1-586 02 37
E-mail: art@galerieandreashuber.at
http://www.galerieandreashuber.at
Opening hours: Tue-Fri 11-18, Sat 11-15 hours
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240314
Galerie Andreas Huber
1040 Wien, Schleifmühlgasse 6-8
Tel: +43-1-586 02 37, Fax: +43-1-586 02 37
Email: art@galerieandreashuber.at
http://www.galerieandreashuber.at
Öffnungszeiten: geschlossen
Galerie Andreas Huber
1040 Wien, Schleifmühlgasse 6-8
Tel: +43-1-586 02 37, Fax: +43-1-586 02 37
Email: art@galerieandreashuber.at
http://www.galerieandreashuber.at
Öffnungszeiten: geschlossen