Off-site Project. In collaboration with Hollie Silvia Rose.

 “Solitude for the mind is as essential as food is for the body”

– Dostoyevsky

Human beings are social by nature and unfit to endure extreme cases of isolation. The fear of being alone runs through our veins deeply. However, with the rise of social media we as a global population are more connected that we have ever been in the history of time. Contrary to the idea, addiction to social media has had a detrimental effect on our mental health, making us feel stressed and isolated in the long run as it doesn’t replace real-life communications. When we are busy with our lives our social persona comes forward and we become simply the reflex of the society wants us to be.

With this collaborative work, Uriya Jurik and Hollie Silvia Rose, investigate the issues that we face in modern world and possible solutions. Solitude is a total installation, an immersive experience that proposes finding solace in intentional isolation as it is not only the turning point to self-actualisation but a capacity to define our identity. We believe that voluntarily and uninterrupted seclusion can foster well-being, creativity, innovation and contribute to peace in our minds and in the world.

Perhaps it would be enough to just project Hollie’s meditation in nature videos and suspending the cloud of wool which would overtake the small space and result in a quite powerful exhibit itself. However we have decided to be experimental, especially our original idea of suspending the cloud and the hammock of the ceiling didn’t technically work in this space. We have pushed the idea of displacement further by bringing leaves and sticks into the studio, combining nature with synthetic and digital. Both of our artistic oeuvre has some spirituality and revolves around redefining ourselves in the complexity of the modern world. During the performance we cocooned ourselves to find solace and to rebirth with renewed reconsidered identity. Why did we think two persons would still work? Because we were the two personalities of one. Because sometimes the biggest fear of finding ourselves alone is dealing with issues that in a daily life could be ignored. Perhaps the intentional kitsch was overpowering the concept so next time will try to be more ambiguous.