8 clouds rising

Aniko Herbert aka Haniko

Visual artist Haniko’s new exhibition ’8 clouds rising’—a continuation of the ’Nubes’ exhibition from last fall—opens this January. The title comes from what is believed to be the first Japanese poem. This is yet another bold attempt by Haniko to create something spare in its aesthetic but radically new by borrowing from the rich visual heritage of East Asian cultures: depicting—with pastel smears here and garbage pieces there—the substance of silence and the pain and pleasure of being lost and confused in the silence; or, in other words, showing the only way that there is which may lead us back to our inner dimensions.

At the exhibition that opens on 13 January besides the recycled or repurposed paper pictures of the ’Otthonka’ series the ’’8 clouds rising’ series will be on display. The pictures, based on lyrical texts, were created in collaboration with writers Kinga Tóth and Réka Ágnes Tóth as a result of a joint creative process over several weeks.

Apart from the pictures—with her distinct use of materials—installations as well as wall coverings will play a role in the exhibition space.

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‘Haniko invites us to stop and contemplate things. Through her pictures the creator intends to remind us of an activity that was all too familiar when we were children, namely watching the clouds—solely for the pure joy of watching them. The task is easy, or is it?

Haniko turns clouds into objects of contemplation and the stars, so to speak, of her work. Through her creations we are invited to enter the gates that open to things we experience every day but seldom appreciate.

This manifold symbol has appeared earlier too in her paper collages made from recycled materials; and of course that other particular Japanese symbol is also present that has become Herbert’s trademark, as it were, over the years: the red thread of fate. A red thread that—used in an inconspicuous and at times rather conspicuous manner—connects things from above with those of down below.’

Photos: Dávid Bíró