New Project: Becva: About Fish, Chapter One

On 20/09/2020, fishermen on the river Bečva witnessed massive amounts of fish dying before their eyes. The water was poisoned by a chemical leak from the factory. They had to dispose of 40 tons of fish that leapt onto the riverbank. Cyanide was found in the dead fish. Water samples were not collected by the responsive authorities, and those taken by fishermen were destroyed. The River was poisoned along a length of 40km. It is lifeless. Before, the river was treasured for its natural habitat. There are only two factories near where the fish started dying. One of them belongs to an influential politician and oligarch who was prime minister at the time of the accident. Numerous questions have been raised regarding the approach of police, prosecution and ministry of environment. To this day, it hasn’t been possible to bring the party responsible for the accident to justice.

These photos are intended to metaphorically intermediate the apocalypse from that day.

New Project: Eco Human Experiment

In August 2022 I started to work on a new environmental art project, which I would like deepen, broaden, finalize and share. Share as book, movie and installation. 

The first conscious part of the project is the element of Water. I would like to elaborate on the water story and expand it to cover other classical elements (fire, earth, air).

My motivation for the experiment: Examining the elements and forces in the nature including the relationship with human element. Encouraging humans to play with the elements. Paying subtle attention to processes within the nature and map human intervention. Supporting mindfulness and respect.

Process of the experiment: I ask people to walk in the forest and then swim or play in the water. The experiment in the water takes about 10-15 minutes, is held in a river dam in the mountains (Černá Nisa and Lipno) and I take pictures and notes of the conversations before and after the experiment.