What happens when a half-open door stands alone in a space without walls, in a green area? This everyday object becomes a magical, symbolic presence, stressing the act of passage. The words “emergency exit” over this door in the green is both liberating and perturbing. It emphasises the idea of a possibility of escape in difficult, extreme cases, that go beyond everyday reality. But it also stresses a sense of order, of planning; the idea that reason has even reckoned with any difficulties, foreseeing an extreme way out.
An emergency door, even more than an ordinary door, is generally on the limit of something; its presence indicates a border, it marks a passage that harks back to the idea of change, transformation, evolution.
“Emerging” or “surfacing” are words Puni constantly uses to describe her work as a sculptress and conceptual video-artist.
In this work, “Emergency” means “emerging, appearing on the surface”.
“Emergency exit” is the point, the place where emerging takes place.
The void, the labyrinth, the cut in the transparent material that opens a passage connecting two worlds and neat writing with an obscure meaning are characteristic elements of Puni’s language, both rarefied and realistic, filled with wonder and magic.
Openings, created for OPEN 14, is part of a larger and more articulated project which develops the details and articulations of a domestic interior in the open air, in nature.
Of this paradoxical house in nature, without walls, but with all the rooms, the bedroom and the kitchen, the bathroom and the study, the first element to appear is Openings, the access point.
Text by
Gloria Vallese