Anna Bujak. Hyperobjects

Anna Bujak’s latest exhibition may be navigated as a “landscape-as-place,” within which we happen upon objects frozen in time and space, references to violent phenomena and invisible forces. Lightning, explosions, afterimages, magnetism—all exceeding the capabilities of human cognition—are here represented through conventional aluminum forms, photography, and video work. The imagined sphere of the exhibition manifests as a creation of the artist’s personal experiences and fears, with echoes of the existential crises faced by twenty-first-century humanity.

While creating the works presented in the exhibition, the artist was inspired by the theory of hyperobjects developed by American philosopher Timothy Morton. Morton’s theory posits hyperobjects as phenomena, objects, and interactions of the Anthropocene existing beyond human cognition—examples being radioactivity, global warming, and petroleum deposits—eluding our grasp owing to their scale, relative invisibility, and dispersion. They nevertheless deeply impact the state of humanity and the Earth’s biosphere. And while, as Morton writes, “We vaguely sense them out of the corner of our eye while seeing the data in the center of our vision,”^{[Timothy Morton, Dark Ecology: For a Logic of Future Coexistence (New York: Columbia UP, 2018).}] we remain immersed in them, cut off from any possibility of escape.

This is a narrative exploring the complex interrelation between humans and nature. It avoids providing simplistic answers to frequently asked questions. Without completely assuaging feelings of guilt and apathy, it brings us face to face with reality, while also allowing us to glimpse the possibility of a future bypassing despondent thinking. An attempt at transforming the horrific-invisible into the demystified-visible.

As a representative of object-oriented ontology (seen as a branch of speculative realism), Morton has formulated a theory that one can ascribe to or not. Anna Bujak allows herself to be transported by it. Employing the means and tools afforded by art, she materializes the idea of the hyperobject for her own purposes. The artist explores a range of the uncanny, of illusion, seeking to convey the evanescent, that which is only vaguely sensed, intuitional, like the smell of ozone during a storm, hair standing up on the back of your neck, static-electric cat fur. Although it is only short flashes that we register in moments of atmospheric pressure discharges, a distinct afterimage is impressed on the retina. The artist snags it, holds it a moment, and then releases it into the space of the gallery. Bujak similarly attempts to convey the impact of the magnetic field—an invisible force shielding planetary life—by concentrating it in one place, then revealing it to the viewer in visible form. The extended length of the film also allows the viewer to marvel at the strange beauty of an explosion releasing its imperceptible radioactive fallout.

In spinning this spellbinding story, the artist guides us through the exhibition with her own voice, in the process allowing us to experience hyperobjects with multiple senses—sight, hearing, and touch.

Accessibility and sensory information:

Light – there is daylight and artificial light in the exhibition: lamps, light from projections. In the Lightning Room, behind a beige curtain, there is semi-darkness and the light comes from flashlights. In the room behind the glass wall, in the corner of the gallery, there is a motion sensor that automatically switches off the light. The room is very dark. In addition, the space is darkened with black curtains. Watch out for a glow-in-the-dark object at the end of the room. You will be guided to the exit by an arrow painted on the floor.

Sound – Mute headphones are available in the gallery, ask the gallery supervisor about them. In the middle of the exhibition you will find three pairs of headphones. You will listen to the artist Anna Bujak’s story on them – a transcription and translation of the audio has been printed on a booklet in three languages: PL, EN, UA. 

Touch – you cannot touch the sculptures at the exhibition. We have prepared a table with miniature works and material samples. There you can touch them, get to know the materials and shapes. Caution should be exercised when children are touching the smaller pieces.

Rest – In the gallery you will find several places to rest: an exhibition bench, a reading area with chairs and a rest area by the cloakroom.
 

This project, premiering at BWA Wrocław, was realized with a scholarship from the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.