After last year’s break, the Signal Festival will light up Prague again. Installations in virtual space will also be a complete novelty.
What will the festival take care of this year?
The main theme of the festival is Plan C. It is ecological, sustainable and, most importantly, it can look under any circumstances. The organizers, together with the artists, reflect on what one can do for the planet Earth. However, many works also respond to the pandemic experience. The signal therefore appealed to artists who worked on this theme and transformed it into an installation that can serve as a stimulus for reflection. If art can do anything, it is to open people’s eyes, to respond strongly to current social issues and to draw attention to the problems facing humanity.
This year, the signal is being performed by the already mentioned Karlín, but also by the Old Town and now also by Holešovice. Visitors can look forward to a monumental 3D projection from the Spanish studio Onionlab, which will turn the well-known environment of the Industrial Palace at the Prague Exhibition Grounds into a unique experience. There will also be a popular videomapping of the church of St. Cyril and Methodius on Karlin Square. This year’s festival theme is also interestingly interpreted by the German studio Weltraumgrafik. His projection draws in with its abstractness and hypnotism. The work responds to a global pandemic, but the creators perceive the disaster as a device and a new beginning.
The ecological theme was also elaborated by one of the most important Czech artists, Milena Dopitová, who will present a kinetic object at the festival. Jeff at the hydroelectric power plant in Štvanice and thus draw attention to the effects of the unhealthy existence of modern society on the nature around us. Jiří Černický, a visual artist, creator of experimental and intermediate projects and head of the Painting Studio at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague, prepared by a mysterious and impressive projection of aquatic animals hidden in the depths of the ocean, who surprisingly cannot Its installed Archaic news can be found in Karlín Barracks. An interactive, playful and energetically completely independent kinetic installation Blooming lights created for festival designers Roman Vrtiška and Vladimír Žák. Visitors can try moving the technological meadow flowers in front of the Main Point Karlín building.
Signal AR, or on Signal even during the day
A complete novelty is the mobile application working with most of the not augmented reality. It will be possible to display digital art objects and an interactive installation in the streets of Karlín using smartphones. A whole route called Signal AR, which is situated in Karlín, is intended for this purpose. The application was developed by Signal throughout the year together with the creative studio BRAINZ IMMERSIVE, bicepsdigital and four Czech artists – painter, sculptor and writer Jan Kaláb, author of futuristic visual concepts AOKU, visual artist Jan Hladil and visual designer Longie.
It will be possible to experience the signal for the first time in daylight – the Signal AR application will only work during the day. It will be available from the beginning of October and will run all year round, so there will be a lot of time to go for a quiet walk through Karlín and try the augmented reality in a more intimate atmosphere compared to the festival, which is attended by a large number of people every year.
Presentation of the winner of the Neon Award
Signal Festival has long supported the youngest generation of Czech visual artists and author groups. During its existence, it has helped to create more than 80 installations. This year, he comes up with a novelty in this mission. For the first time, the Prague Gas Competition prepared the Neon Award for students of art colleges. The winner of the challenge was the work Simulakra authors Vítězslav Plavec and Filip Zeman from the Faculty of Architecture and Art of the Technical University of Liberec. The installation will be part of this year’s Signal.
The signal is not just about installations
The accompanying program offered a symposium on the sustainability of the cultural and artistic environment, an exhibition by the artist Michal Škapa and an audiovisual performance Vektroskop at the Archa Theater. During the four-day program compiled by David Vrbík, Soňa Koutová, Tomáš Krivošík, Beata Hlavenková, Ondřej Skala (JTNB), Stanislav Abrahám, Leoš Hort (HRTL) and others will perform here.