The diploma project expands on works from previous years and comments on the contradictory relationship between man and nature. The original object installation was designed to represent attributes attractive to both the human and animal realms. Whether it‘s a roof over one’s head, a metaphorical fixed point in space which can be captured, a source of food or an object of curiosity. The genesis of the whole project commenced with my partial move to the region of Bohemian Switzerland, the former Sudetenland. Here, I’ve rather enthusiastically immersed myself in the study of permaculture, naively planted a large apple orchard and started running Cifra Gallery with my wife and several friends. The gallery was not only founded as a response to the ‘Prague-centric’ art scene but also an opportunity to meet interesting colleagues outside the traditional gallery and academic structures. All these experiences were linked to the place where I was partially brought up and, unconsciously, became very personal.

Organically, the last works I’ve created at the Academy of Fine Arts evolved into a personal statement which should disclose both the mentioned and unspoken interpretations of the work.

The space above our heads represents the volume of experiences both in their positive and negative connotations. Some people leave this space open to others, others anxiously protect it from the outside world. However, it is never possible to understand the complete situation. This catafalque of experiences which roams in the time assigned to us, accompanied by a satirical placard, justifying our actions - whatever they may be.

The objects were created in nature, where they are not only located but are purposeful, and will be returned back to nature after playing their role in the exhibition. The image of the journey and its closure is interwoven with the work; however, the work is not an example of ‘travelling architecture’ (such as Simon Starling‘s Shedboatshed), rather it is a critique of commodification of the artwork, its calculated aestheticization and satire on the mundane repetition. The objects evoke the feeling of uprooting from their original environment, therefore embodying the history of Sudetenland, a place of their origin. However, they also illustrate the complicated relationship between man and nature, and its separation from the natural processes that have defined our development for thousands of years. Today, in these accelerated times, we have become the self-proclaimed rulers of the planet, being unable of stopping the expansion of human ‘majesty’ - it relies on how we choose to handle this experience.