Galerie Mario Mazzoli proudly presents the first solo exhibition in Germany of Norwegian artist Kristoffer Myskja (Oslo, 1985)
The works in the exhibition are driven by the artist’s fascination towards the transition from alchemy to modern science.
Indeed, in Myskja’s works one can find elements typical both disciplines and of their methodologies. The materials used (such as mercury and gold as found in “Splitting the mercury drop in order to find balance” and in “Covering Gold”) the delicate balance between contrasting forces (“Governors”) and the ritual element (“Smoking Machine”) are a reference to alchemy. On the other hand, the means and the process through which he creates his pieces, along with his accuracy and engineer-like precision, are typical of the modern scientist.
The enchanting-character of the works, however, is a function of the artist’s rare ability to harmonize those elements, driving the viewer’s attention toward a sculpture that is mechanical in nature, but nonetheless poetic, suggestive and hermetic.
The show’s title, “Hermetic Mechanics,” indicates the hidden and impenetrable character which connects all works by Kristoffer Myskja, and even more it underlines their being completely closed systems, namely independent mechanisms that entirely exclude human interaction. Myskja therefore creates machines that are paradoxically useless, altering their raison d’être, which is providing indispensable help to human enterprises.
