Curatorial Text / Kostka Gallery / XAVIER POULTNEY (UK): TRANSIENT OBJECTS
GALLERY KOSTKA
presents
the exhibition
XAVIER POULTNEY (UK): TRANSIENT OBJECTS
curator: Karina
Pfeiffer Kottová
opening: 6. 3. 19.00
exhibition duration: 6. 3. – 30. 3. 2014
The exhibition Transient Objects by the emerging
British artist Xavier Poultney is an investigation into the evolution of
knowledge and the cultural ramifications of technology, inspired by a
scientific endeavor called the SDSS. The Sloan Digital Sky Survey is a detailed
three-dimensional digital mapping of the universe visible from its base in New
Mexico. In Kostka Gallery, Poultney exhibits photographs and objects that
investigate the progression of ideas from the local Native American Indian
understanding of reality to the cutting edge present.
We sit here on
Earth and gaze up at the stars. We try to count them, draw lines in between
them, and group them. Feeling like we might eventually get closer to the
transcendental by trying to measure it, using the most progressive scientific
methods to grasp it. But on the other hand, we can't help but create horoscopes
and mythologies, as if we couldn't stand the fact that those glowing objects
might just be physical phenomena loosing their charm in a laboratory
environment. Drawing a line between one of the most ambitious projects in contemporary
astronomy and the perhaps more “naive”, but at the same time thoughtful and
complex investigations of the Native Indians, Xavier Poultney's exhibition
creates an intriguing tension- that of a respected scientist who wouldn't get
very far without keeping his childish curiosity, or, that of a philosopher who
longed to present an objective proof for the existence of God.
The works on display go beyond mere
documentation of a scientific project juxtaposed to observations of the same
reality through tribal rituals and symbols.
Poultney
undertook a long-term research project in New Mexico, Seattle, and Washington
D.C. in order to create a body of work which balances between playfulness, physical
perfection, and attention to detail. In his set of photographs, the artist
mixes imagery from the scientific procedures and tools used within the SDSS
project, petroglyphs or other examples of early art to be found in New Mexico
and his own observations of the surrounding landscapes and skies. One of the
exhibited sculptures is based on a shape of the visually striking aluminum
disc, a component from an instrument used for the digital mapping. Thousands of
tiny holes, in practice intersected by optical fibers, correspond to the
objects in the night sky. Despite its complex nature, the disc holds somewhat
touching personal marks of the scientist's interaction with it. The second
sculpture is based on the aesthetics of meteorological equipment crossed with
head costumes of the Apache, which were used in rituals believed to control the
weather or other environmental elements. Through his installation, Poultney
makes a good point about the duality of human nature: our longing for discovery
is as strong as our fascination by mystery. We are driven to create complex
systems of thought, but at the same time we are constantly thrilled by the
unexplainable, somewhat childish or irrational. We sit here on Earth and think
about buying land on the Moon.
--
Xavier Poultney (1983) is a British
photographer and sculptor. Through his works, he addresses the intersection of
science, technology and cultural or ritual artifacts. He received his MA in
Communication Art & Design at the Royal College of Art in London, and
currently collaborates with the Space in Between Gallery in London. Along with
the United Kingdom, he has shown his work in Košice (Tri Outputs), Paris
(Glitch Fiction) and Athens (The Hub).
Supported by the Czech Center
in London.
--
Open daily 1pm –
8pm
Voluntary admission
fee
Guided tours and
workshops for schools or other groups are available upon request.
Contact and more
information:
Christina Gigliotti - PR & Marketing
christina@meetfactory.cz
+ 420 776 798 202
Karina Pfeiffer Kottová – Curator
karina@meetfactory.cz
+ 420 732 464 434
MeetFactory
is supported in 2014 by a grant from the City of Prague amounting to 6.500.000
CZK.