DK: Scotoma |
Loža Gallery, Koper |
14th of May 2021 – 27th of June 2021
With Scotoma, DK focuses on the premises of quantum theory that has long occupied the thoughts of both physicists and philosophers alike, and has always been deeply rooted in human understanding, from ancient texts to postmodern metaphysics – namely, that the observer, by the very act of observing, co-creates observed reality.
DK links this potential with the idea of Scotomata. In medicine, a scotoma is a spot in the field of vision where vision is either impaired or absent. It can be dark, very bright, blurred or flickering. DK uses the term in a figurative sense to mean a gap in our perception, recognition and understanding of what we have seen – a mental process, in other words. DK has created an astonishing body of photographs taken in the immediate vicinity of his studio: although invariably abstract and containing no reference to the actual motif, the images are pregnant with visual elements that not only intensify the aesthetic impression but also serve as powerful vehicles for the content he is trying to convey. Consisting of six independent series, combined to form a distinct whole, the exhibition invites the viewer to become aware of, and even transform, his or her own manner of seeing it.
In the photographs in Memories of Tomorrow we still make out archetypal dream landscapes: aided by the creative work of our conscious-ness, we are still able to follow the artist on his journey across the world. At the same time, the images act as a warning that the hopelessness of contemporary society must inexorably lead to the destruction of our planet as we know it today, leaving it to exist tomorrow only in the form of memories. The Premonition and Behind the Eyelids series, which are placed next to each other, are much more removed from reality, inviting us to ask ourselves: What is real? What do we really perceive? What do we merely think we see and think is real? From here we come to Gloom, the realm of apparitions. The ideal state is one where the act of observing has been replaced by blind gaze, which is represented by the quiet but strong inner vibrations of the photographs in the Almost Hope series.
There is no expectation in this way of perceiving the images, no thought and no judgement, making it the only possible way of seeing Truth. Once we have crossed the border into the final space, Darkening, and have acquired this new skill of blind gaze, the reality of our contemporary society opens up before us, our increasingly polarized society, which, through various recontextualisations and “correctness”, sinks into an expressionless gray conformism and culminates in a completely dark single-mindedness.
