Exercises
At first glance, these are compositions from abstract objects, formal rhythmic exercises. In fact, these are red-meades, real-life things — climbing chains for scaldromes designed for physical exercise. The variety of forms is produced by functionality — the clues repeat some kind of natural roughness of the rocks. A double simulation is an object of art in the museum, and the same thing in life depicts nature.
One of the main points in the Exercises is that the coordinate system is overturned. The clues are lined up in a horizontal row, and there’s nowhere to go to see them.
The big wall looks like a real scalding machine, but there’s a clear chain system of attachment to the wall — they’re upside down here, and whoever wants to go through this exercise would have to move upside down by overturning the laws of gravity on the ground.
The song on the floor repeats the real part of the road on the scaldrome, but you can only crawl through it. He answers the climber’s climber’s training board on the ceiling — she’s also hanged outside the rules, out of access, and turned into a decorative element like a blind outlet from which the chandelier is supposed to hang from the center.
Artistic stones in the art space show the absurdity of the efforts that people are seeking to attain the highest position in today’s world, sometimes without even realizing that their goals do not belong to them.
Rather than conquering the summit, these actions resemble the routine of Sisyphus on a day — to — day basis. For Kama in his Essa on Nonsense, Sisyphus is most important when he looks at a rock falling off a mountain and realizes that it will have to rise again:
«Sysyphus interests me during this pause. His worn-out face is barely distinguishable from the stone!» And the stone has a face, a friendly face.
Work is no longer a punishment from the gods, but it becomes a man’s own decision when he realizes that the most important thing is not to take himself to the top, but his work is free.
However, as long as the work is absurd, there is only a pause, the importance of which Kamu stressed — looking at stones in an attempt to find guidance.
Diana Machulina’s exhibition took place on 3.08.2011–4.09.2011 at the Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow
