Alena Matejka: In this project I look at old myths and memories buried deep inside the human subconscious. The secrets of my dear one are hidden in the vast Scandinavian forests. I travel with him to the wilderness where wolves, bears, and lynx live, where peculiar plants grow, where I find animal teeth and bones, where there is no electricity, no phone signal, where a human can dream but must hunt. That is how »My Dear, Hunter from Lavondyss« came about, inspired by Lars my Swedish husband, the hunter, and Robert Holdstock’s fantasy novel Lavondyss, whose title I borrowed. The name smells of earth and leaves. Our works have met but Robert Holdstock and I have not. He had accepted an invitation to my first show of »My Dear, Hunter from Lavondyss« at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague but unfortunately he passed away (in 2009). Robert Holdstock will forever remain in Lavondyss.
In Holdstock’s novel, reality is intertwined with myth. The impossible cold and crystal-clear ice form the symbolic boundary between the fabled land and the outer world. In the glass cabinet of »My Dear, Hunter from Lavondyss« are the saved finds from the mythical and actual forest, bones, teeth, bird wings, the remains of known and unknown animals that a hunter brought home. On the wall hang his gun and the animals he hunted down in the woods. No one knows whether they came from the dark forest or from Lavondyss… All the animals I used for my art were dead when I found them, mostly on roads. These animals did not die because of me and although their souls are in heaven, their bodies can serve artistic intentions.
My Dear, Hunter from Lavondyss, 2009. Installation, mold melted glass and organic parts. All objects are a life size. Barock cabinet decorated with ornaments, made of crystal glass. Inside are bones, skeletons, wings, horns and teeth of mythic animals. 183 x 100 x 40 cm. Elk head made of crystal glass hanging on the wall, 70 cm x 40 cm x 25 cm. Old hunting bag with hunted bird made of crystal, bird: ca 10 x 30 x 15 cm. Old hunting gun made of crystal. Hunting vest made of feathers of wild birds, 4 x 130 x 100 cm. Crystal frame decorated with oak leaves, wings of wild dugs, 4 x 130 x 40 cm.
