Divji v srcu: Poglej lisjaku v oči … /
Wild at Heart: Look the Fox in the Eye…
21. 2. – 14. 3. 2020
ACE KIBLA / KiBela, Ulica Kneza Koclja 9, Maribor

Look the Fox in the Eye… by artist trio Wild at Heart (Aleksij Kobal, Silvester Plotajs – Sicoe, Jurij Kalan), joined by painter Matej Čepin, is the second exhibition of this art collective at the MMC KIBLA in Maribor.

It has been ten years since January 2010, when this art collective was first hosted by Kibla. Instead of sculptor Mirko Bratuša, who had been a member of the collective since 2008, and had exhibited along the other three artists ten years ago, on this occasion the trio invited painter Matej Čepin to join them, which can be seen as a sort of return to the origins, like 2002, when they were joined by another painter, Gregor Kokalj. In general, the Wild at Heart were first presented together already in 1998 (Kalan, Kobal, Sicoe), while their exhibition at the MMC KIBLA is their sixth in altogether 22 years of existence.

The following was written in 2010 to accompany their exhibition: “As a team they adhere to no concepts of thought, common art practices or views of artistic activity. They are only joined by free expression and research into the field of art, therefore the exhibition setting is not planned as a concept, rather being a spontaneous common search of dialogue. They thus try to evade the pre-prepared artistic “packed lunch”.” And in 2020, the story continues…

Although the works in the exhibition are charged with distinct artists’ marks, their stylistic variety and individual approaches blend into a homogeneous painting environment that emanates artistic passion, exudes life-force energy, and oozes a joy for (and from) painting. Members of this unique, one of a kind non-formal collective, committed to figure painting, are joined by an awareness of the power of painting, a belief in the mission of the image and the use of typical color palettes, motifs and compositions that weave narratives, drag to the depths, keep on the surface, or launch into space. They communicate with us. Relaxing, calm, wild, critical, meditative, contemplative, even socially engaged, but first and foremost artistically responsive through primary, sometimes ancient impulses, for which art remains a primordial principle and the motor of everything that exists, functions and has meaning.

As the quartet looks at us from a photograph with Leningrad-Cowboys-style hair-dos, the title itself, Look the Fox in the Eye…, testifies to their energy, to their decisiveness and determination to paint, to the fact that painting is their principal activity and the traditional easel painting their medium. Their point of departure is oil-on-canvas, to which they occasionally add acrylic (Aleksij Kobal) or resin (Matej Čepin), although their gesture can also be seen as a form of (self-)irony and questioning about who this fox (that needs to be looked in the eye) is.

he art collective, so diverse both in terms of expression as well as character, is hard to pin down in a uniform way, or by one common denominator. Each of the artists is known for his superior visual language, unique color palette, distinct compositions, and individually inspired motifs treated in their canvases. These can be intimate, family paintings, though at the same time realistic (but not like a caricature, more like socialist realism – Jurij Kalan); or inspired by pop-art, fauvism and expressionism (Silvester Plotajs – Sicoe); or by fantastic realism, appearing as dreamy and abstract in the technicist imaginary landscapes that can be a consequence of genetic engineering (Aleksij Kobal); to ecological, post-apocalyptic, post-industrial and existentialist motifs (Matej Čepin).

Their works simply emanate a dedication to painting, while they themselves pour out an artistic eagerness onto the canvases. All of this is upgraded through a mastery of the métier, with each individuals’ sense of humor adding more dimensions. Although different, they function as a collective, since all of them are attracted by the straightforwardness of a painting, its primal nature and the vividness of colors, the topicality of the traditional painting medium, the historical indispensability of oil-on-canvas and the endless expressive possibilities that are still out there in new forms, formats and themes and that will never become out-of-date; they will always communicate with the audience, the observers of their creations.

Perhaps we could even say, somewhat superficially, that they are drawn to narrative, color and figure, because art is always in the details, and, in the words of the Little Prince, “it is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” Although Wild at Heart’s paintings serve as a mirror to the society, as socially critical works, we must ourselves discover the view that will take us to the essence.

Therefore, we shouldn’t be fooled by only the external markers of their works, such as the distinct and typical color scheme, composition and technique in the sense of formal technical parameters. Rather, we should descend into what we are seeing, we should accept this invitation for a journey into the unknown and let ourselves indulge in this surely extraordinary adventure. Let us try and immerse ourselves into them, and into ourselves, with the awareness that we are living in a world so esthetically and technologically perfected, where everything is in abundance, yet socially we are becoming more and more alienated, lonely, passive and numb.

When we find ourselves in their magical landscapes, inhabited or desolate, worlds open up that are not just beautiful, but shocking, and layered with different space-times that appear to always be here and now, a part of our world. It is probably true that our life is both a result and a consequence, an assembly of all previous space-times, deeply embedded into our individual and perhaps even collective memory, a part of the individual and collective subconscious, which art is able to shift into consciousness through various media. Bringing matters to consciousness is a fundamental mission of art.

With their topical appearance and newly created oeuvres, the Wild at Heart remain true to themselves, their values and ideals. Through art, they do not stop being engaged and critical, but are always social, humane and sensitive, both for the community and the details in their paintings, originality, unique narratives and approaches, not only at home, but also in the broader international space.
– Peter Tomaž Dobrila

BIO:
Silvester Plotajs Sicoe (1965) is a painter and graphic artist, who graduated under the mentorship of Professor Emerik Bernard from the Ljubljana Academy of Fine Arts in 1988. He continued his postgraduate studies in painting with Professor Gustav Gnamuš, and in graphic arts with Professor Lojze Logar. In 1990 he took advanced study courses with Professor Martin Tissing at the Minerva Academy in Groningen, The Netherlands. He has received numerous awards and prizes for his work, and currently works as a freelance artist in Ljubljana.

Jurij Kalan (1961) graduated in painting in 1990 from the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana with Professor Metka Krašovec. His works have been shown in numerous exhibitions both home and abroad. He was a receiver of the Grohar Scholarship (1992), the Kranj City Prize, the May Salon Prize, and the Bronze Aritas (2001) at the Slovene Triennial of Satire and Humor. He lives and works as a freelance artist in Ljubljana.

Aleksij Kobal (1962) graduated in 1986 from the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana with Professor Janez Bernik, and completed his postgraduate studies in painting in 1993 under the mentorship of Professor Metka Krašovec. His works have won him several awards and recognitions, and have been shown in numerous exhibitions home and abroad. For four years he has collaborated with the percussion band The Stroj, and is the author of several music projects, as well as the book Glas (Voice). Among other things, he plays the flute. He lives in Ljubljana, working as a freelance artist.

Matej Čepin (1977). His works have been shown in exhibitions both home and abroad, winning him several prizes and awards, among them the 2nd prize of the 4th Biennial of Small Format Paintings in Ljutomer (2006), the grand prix of the Ex-Tempore in Piran (2009), and the grand prix of the Ex-Tempore in Piran (2013), for which he was nominated four times (2008, 2009, 2013 in 2016). Matej Čepin lives and works in Celje.