Night of Culture: Dominik Lejman “60s Cathedral” – videofresco

The projection can be viewed through a window at Labirynt Gallery 2. The work is accompanied by descriptions in Polish, English, and Ukrainian, as well as audio descriptions for the visually impaired.

When: 3/4 June 2023, 7 p.m.-2 a.m.
Where: Galeria Labirynt 2, ul. Grodzka 3, Lublin
Admission: free

Dominik Lejman
60s Cathedral
2011
video (videofresco)
2’25’’
Collection of Galeria Labirynt

The work by Dominik Lejman is a looped projection without sound, showing the manoeuvres of a group of parachute jumpers. Captured during the flight, without opened parachutes, they alternately group and separate, creating different figures. Their silhouettes are black and white, presented in negative, thus practically devoid of visible details of the physiognomy. The figures levitating in the air, grabbing their legs and hands, transform into shapes resembling a rosette, a star or a composition of flickering points in a kaleidoscope. The choreography of the aerial acrobatics of the jumpers has a specific goal – it is an attempt to visually reconstruct the vault of the Romanesque cathedral in Durham.

The high contrast of the projection and a uniform, completely black background make it possible to watch it also in a bright, illuminated room or in a public space – which was the artist’s greatest concern. Dominik Lejman called this kind of work a videofresco. According to this artistic technique, the wall on which the videofresco is displayed becomes an integral part of the work, and the recording itself acquires a very delicate, almost immaterial effect.

“60s Cathedral” is a desire to reflect the mystical nature of a sacred building and reach for what is divine. The stable and monumental architectural structure is replaced by an elusive composition in which the main role is played by humans.

description: Emilia Lipa
translation: Krystian Kamiński