loom on the moon's immersive multimedia exhibition in czechia

all images © BoysPlayNice

The first of the three installations by Loom on the Moon, Encyclopedia, focuses on writer Pavel Kosatík's distinctive perspective on the evolution of Zlín and its surroundings, which the studio subsequently complemented and summarized with illustrations. ‘This resulted in an intergenerational dialogue between text and image, which are sometimes in harmony and sometimes in contrast,’ writes the team.

Structure-wise, Encyclopedia is a simple wooden wall with a circular ground plan spanning about 40 meters with a 3-meter height. Its shape adapts to the existing trees by giving way to the eaves line of their crowns, an interaction that endows the wall with a dynamic form. The outer shell incorporates a mirror-polished steel sheet, and the inner surface of waterproof plywood serves as a surface for the artistic representation of 700 years of Zlín's history.

Statements installation

The second work, Imerse, is an immersive, audiovisual experience coaxing visitors ‘to inhabit past moments of Zlín various eras, seasons, lights, in rural times, during a fire, when the railway arrived, during the Bata boom, and also present moments. It is a frame-by-frame painted animation that treats each film frame as a painting.‘

Built essentially as a simple ‘outdoor’ cinema, the film's projection surface is similar in design to Encyclopedia. The waterproof plywood skeleton is lined on both sides with plywood panels, while the inner side facing the film installation is clad in mirrored polished steel sheet. This creates an interesting optical theater for the audience between the two mirrored surfaces – one flat and the other rounded.

The last permanent installation, Statements, is a lyrical constellation of organically-shaped mirrors placed on the lawn among the park's trees, evoking rain puddles. Designed to be lightweight and non-invasive, the mirrors reveal a thin plate made of a polished stainless steel sheet set on screws for stability. Inside each, Loom on the Moon placed a speaker and lighting technology. When connected and synchronized, the ‘rain puddles’ transform into an immersive installation.

Encyclopedia installation

Accompanying the mirrors is a sound composition ‘that is a celebration of the cycle of time, the turning of the seasons, the lengthening and shortening of the days, the moments of equinox and solstice, which functions as an unpredictable, surprising solar calendar or astrological clock,’ says the practice. To compose the music sounding through the park, Loom on the Moon carefully mapped and studied the ringing of bells in the belfries of Zlín. As a result, Statements follows the vibrations of a bell bronze, creating a scaled-down geographical imprint of the region. Even more, the individual, multi-channel compositions and their exact periodical positioning correspond to a study of the sun's and stars’ movement.

The sound level is supported with a moving light, which not only provides a visual accompaniment to the mirrors and music but also a poetic and playful alternative to the park‘s night-time lighting. ‘This results in a harmony between natural and artificial light, between the sound of the park, the musical composition and the passage of time. The Mirrors of Zlín thus becomes an artwork that can exist only in this place, at this time,’ states the studio.