Nataša Sienčnik

The artistic research of Nataša Sienčnik is greatly immersed in the present time and in the analysis of all those social, political and cultural issues through which it is characterized, engaging in a dialogue with the past and a future that can only be imagined. In the conception of the artistic work as an instrument of reflection, the artist has often made use of mechanisms aimed at directly involving the observer and stimulating his/her critical thinking.
The spectrum of her languages is wide and includes theoretic and conceptual investigations, design, graphics, the alteration of existing objects, installations–including sound and interactive ones as well–in the public space, photography and videos. Her works, which are rigorous in shape and never accidental in their aesthetics, are frequently enriched with bright shades of colors. For all these reasons, the research of the artist lies in a hybrid territory that questions the essence of the object and its inclusion within a specific artistic category.
Nataša Sienčnik (b. 1984, Klagenfurt) lives and works in Vienna, where she teaches at the Academy of Fine Arts and at Graphische. She completed her studies in Transmedia Art at the Academy of Fine Arts of Vienna, Communication Design at Kingston University of London and Networked Media at Piet Zwart Institute of Rotterdam.

How to draw a border in the sky

The project consists of an installation of approximately ten white birdhouses, situated in a garden of San Vito al Tagliamento. These utopian sculptures resemble abstract houses, attracting migratory birds and providing nests for their families. The sky has no borders and we invite these birds to visit our perfect gardens and provide them with shelter and food. These creatures are more than welcome to stay, unlike others, that are crossing the Mediterranean Sea. Promises of a better land are soon to be crushed when utopian imagination and reality overlap. We lock them in towers, cages, barracks and faraway places, doing our best to exclude them from public life.
The installation is meant to be placed in the garden of the Ancient Hospital, a historic place of compassion. At first glance the objects look just like little idyllic family houses. It is upon closer inspection that they turn out to be cages rather than homes. Their windows are locked with lattices and their golden doors can close at any time.