7 April 2013
Born in 1978, the German artist Thilo Frank was commissioned by Sharjah Art Foundation to create an art installation for Sharjah Biennial 11. Usually, His installations would require physical dialogue with the viewer. The elements he mainly focuses on in his work are how we humans interpret light, space, and motion. Infinite rock was the name of his poetic and playful art instillation at the Biennial.
During my visit to Sharjah Biennial 11 I got to view fine selections of art endeavors. Some were interesting, some were replications of previous worksI have seen before, and some were not that interesting to grab my attention. However, there was one art installation that I prematurely judged before experiencing it.
While we where touring, I entered Bait AL-Serkal and I stumbled upon a huge vector shaped rock installation covered with black fabric. It was Thilo Frank’s infinite rock.
I stood in the queue waiting for my turn trying to gobble up the awed expressions of visitors who went inside the rock. By the time it was my turn, I was already standing on my toes waiting to enter. The moment I stepped in was nothing I have ever experienced in my conscious life before. Took of my sandal and went inside a cube shaped room that was exploding with perfectly aligned mirrors all around, ceiling, and ground while a humble swing was placed in the center of the cube
The geometry of my depictions all around was as if I was in a grid of a digital world. A simple touch of the swing makes the viewer stay longer than just standing there. The flawless motion of swinging between the vectors of the fragile mirrors was more likely to be a path to your unconscious state of mind. I always imagined how it would feel if I was gliding on a grid, it was that moment when something you experienced only in your unconscious mind turns into reality.
The artist’s use of a mirror room was not the main idea. Surprisingly, the playful swing was placed in such conventional places in previous artwork, which makes the swing the key to the artist success. Infinite rock was a concept presented previously by the same artist. The previous installation created was called “The Phoenix is closer than it appears” showcased at the Museum of Modern Art in Denmark 2011.
