PRESS RELEASE

„How was it that everything went quietly and happily for so long? Who directed the paths of my enemies so that they gave my property a wide berth? Why was I protected for so long, only to be so terrified now?” – Franz Kafka: The Burrow

With his installation ‚but everything remained unchanged, …‘ Fivos Theodosakis creates a formally isomorphic structure that unfolds between confining materiality and permeable interstice. With his walk-in installation, he designs a space within a space that not only breaks the boundaries of closed architecture, but also moves on the threshold between stage design and visual art. In a transmedial and cross-genre approach, this tension directs the viewer’s attention to the reality of our lives. The contextual starting point is Franz Kafka’s unfinished story ‚The Burrow‘ (1923/24), which describes the fear and isolation, as well as greed and expansionist aspirations, of a being who has built himself an isolated retreat. In Theodosakis‘ installation, these divergences between the inside and the outside, both psychic and physical, are formed on different levels. They bring out the restrictive contradictions of boundaries, such as the feeling of insecurity/security or captivity/freedom.

The work is to be understood as an ambivalent place of uninterrupted movement and constant presence. The tension of the ropes and their semi-permeable, geometric structure lead to the confusion of visual sensation. In an etymological sense, the rational is inextricably linked to the recognition of patterns. Countless beginnings and endings are condensed by the arrangement in horizontal and vertical paths. In the process, the light reveals and makes movement partially visible, which is underscored by the sound work on the floor.

The ambivalent and diffuse mood of the work is transmitted to the visitors and in doing so, Theodosakis plays with the problematic topic of drawing of boundaries. ‚but everything remained unchanged, …‘ understands itself as a cognitive analytical investigation, whereby the installation becomes a transcendental space.