Virtual reality work by Nathalie Djurberg & Hans Berg at Julia Stoschek Collection
17 January 2020
The JULIA STOSCHEK COLLECTION is one of the world’s most comprehensive private collections of time-based art. As part of an ongoing collaboration, JSC and Acute Art will present Nathalie Djurberg & Hans Berg’s It Will End in Stars (2018) in Berlin from 25 January. The work is an immersive virtual reality experience combining Djurberg’s distinctive sculpted figures with black and white charcoal drawings, text, and an unsettling soundtrack by Berg.Through Djurberg’s continued interest in archetypal landscapes, evoking fairy tales first encountered in childhood, viewers begin their journey deep in a forest, entering a clearing to discover a wooden cabin. Inside, a wolf sits in front of a glowing fire. Hand-written text, which appears hanging in mid-air, conveys the wolf’s thoughts, merging digital technology with an aesthetic closer to silent cinema. He describes the virtual environment as the ‘shadowside’, delivering a confession that merges themes common in Djurberg’s practice; fear, guilt and animalistic impulse.
Painstakingly scanned and animated, Djurberg’s virtual reality creature is responsive, meeting the viewer’s gaze and responding to their movements. The effect is disconcerting, making us uncomfortably aware of our status as a watched intruder. The dream-like visions end in a sprawling star-scape, removing any sense of time and space through a suggestion of infinity.
It Will End in Stars is on view from 25 January to 26 April. Find more information here.
