PQ 2015
Objects
The world is made up of stories, and we are
their actors. Sometimes we appear in the main roles, sometimes in supporting
roles. Sometimes we are co-authors, sometimes just random bystanders. The
places where these stories take place are also their stages and auditoriums.
And we see the objects in those stories as props forming an intimate part
thereof.
photo: Pipsa Keski-Hakuni
Stories and the objects that appear in them
possess varying degrees of immortality depending on the breadth of their
audience. A strong personal story hidden within an object behind the closed
doors of a private household has a different impact on society than the most
banal story of an object that appears on stage during a theatre performance, that
is closely associated with an important personality, that dazzles the crowds on
a public square, or that lives posthumously as a reincarnation in a museum. The
dignity that we assign to an object and the attention that we give it are
directly related to the weight and impact of the story with which it is
associated.
Objects thus are not autonomous things, removed from the surrounding world; they never stand alone, just for themselves. They have their time of birth, their own life, death and life after death, but they are always connected to the world of human narratives. They were, are and will always be references to the individual stories of their authors, owners, users, or mere observers.
This exhibition presents a disparate
collection of items, objects, and props that have made public appearances in
the theatre or in public space. But none stands on its own. They all represent
the stories to which they are linked. They contain either a strong personal
story, a story associated with the theatre or a public performance, or they
relate to a political or social context.
We are thus not merely exhibiting objects as such, although many of them possess an undeniable visual quality. We are much more interested in the stories hidden inside, stories that are not visible at first glance. Besides presenting objects from literally the whole world and many different cultures, the exhibition also offers a brief overview of all the stories of human existence that they represent.
Curator: Tomáš Svoboda
Participating artists: Anne Karin ten Bosch /NL/; Susanna Clemente /IT/ Aedín Cosgrove/Noelia Ruiz (Pan Pan Theatre) /IE/; Francis Djulbing/Anna Tregloan /AUS/; Tony De Goldi /NZ/; Aarón Govea /MX/; Emma Hicks/Katie Louise Williams /AUS/; Pipsa Keski-Hakuni/FIN/; Nataliia Krankova /Rus; Laterna magika Praha /CZ/; Shifu Liao /CHI; Pegi Marshall-Amundsen /USA/; Stephanie Mayer-Staley /USA/; Národní divadlo Praha /CZ/; Elina Niarchou /GR/ ; Torgeir Gabrielsen/Christian Tony Norum/Jon Lundell/Petter Ballo /NO/; Marcela Oteíza /RCH/; Joan-Sabas Pardo /S/; Letizia Binda Partensky/Huggies /CAN/; Braulio Amadis Rodriguez Perez/ Dalí Estrada Sour/Eduardo Josue de la Cruz/Gabriel Pareyon/Enid Negrete /MEX/; Jason Randolph /USA/; Juan de Dios Rath/Gabriel Pareyon/Enid Negrete /MEX/; Lorne Reitzenstein /CAN/; Nicole Sabella/Nora Jacobs/Veronica Burger /A/; Theodora Skipitares /USA/; Thorunn S. Thorgrimsdottir/Gudrun S. Gisladottir /IS/; Heather and Seth Warren-Crow /Travis Clark /USA/; Julita Wójcik, Marcin Wziontek /P/
