Vlado Velkov’s Reality Extensions
Vlado Velkov actually works everywhere. He has a small studio in Berlin and a larger one in Brandenburg, but most of his work is done outside in public spaces, which is why he would not call himself a studio artist. We meet him at Ephra Atelier in Prenzlauer Berg, where he is already waiting for us with curiosity in his eyes.
First of all, Vlado really wants to know a lot from us: What works of art do we know that can be seen outside? We naturally think of statues or sculptures (on the way here we saw one made of screws and metal) and pictures sprayed on walls (street art is what Vlado calls it). But we also know performances, when people perform tricks or dress up as statues. And there is even art in the air, for example when airplanes paint white cloud shapes in the sky.
"Stand und Verfassung", 2020, installation by Inge Mahn and Vlado Velkov above Lake Wolzig, © Inge Mahn and Vlado Velkov
Vlado also likes to show his art outdoors, especially in lakes. Unlike museums or galleries, the space in the water is not limited by walls or ceilings - and there is not even a solid floor, as the water level rises or falls depending on the season and the amount of rain. In the first winter of the Covid pandemic, Vlado set up a Christmas tree in the middle of a large lake. With a view of the tree, Christmas could be celebrated on the shore in the fresh air and at a great distance. Just as the lockdown was extended again and again at the time, the Christmas tree remained on the lake until the contact restrictions were relaxed. On the video we can see how the seasons pass and the tree goes crazy in the process in a quite literal sense: a small motor turned the tree around its own axis so fast that it looked as if it was dancing and throwing its silver balls far away from itself.
Vlado prefers to work with other artists. He often creates his artworks in pairs or in a larger group. He has also worked as a curator for a long time. This is the person who plans exhibitions, comes up with concepts, chooses artists and invites them to show work on a certain theme or in a certain place. This can happen in a museum or outside, in public space. For example - who would have thought it – in, on, over and by a lake!
Just as unusual as the places Vlado chooses to present his art are often the forms in which the works appear. At the moment, he is showing art in the Tiergarten that cannot be seen at all with the naked eye. He wants to show us this, and since the Tiergarten is quite a distance away, he brought the exhibition with him without further ado: it is now installed not far from the Ephra Atelier in Weinbergspark. Transporting an entire exhibition across town like that – isn’t that a lot of work? We're in for a surprise. When we arrive in the park, the only works of art we can recognise at first glance are isolated bronze statues. But they really don't look like Vlado made them! Instead, he holds a smartphone in front of our noses and invites us to go on a journey of discovery. And indeed, all sorts of things suddenly happen around us: here a lumbering truck comes towards us, there the wind whirls up colourful leaves. Countless boards fly through the air, only to come together soon after to form an imposing tower. Next to it, a dragon-like monster in blue and pink hovers high above the meadow.
Vlado explains to us that this technique is called AR or Augmented Reality. Unlike virtual reality, where you are completely immersed in a digital world, AR overlays and merges with our surroundings like a second layer. But how is this augmented reality designed? The beings and objects do not look as if they were drawn or filmed. Back in the studio, Vlado shows us a free website and explains the functions with which we can deform a ball, colour it and thus transform it into the most unlikely creatures. Before Vlado gets to the second point, however, we have already figured out almost everything ourselves – we know our way around digital programmes pretty well. Vlado is amazed when we present him with our monsters, figures and spider- and crab-like fantasy creatures. Unfortunately, there is not enough time to actually plant our creatures in space and let them merge with reality. However, we wouldn’t be surprised if we met them soon on our way to school...
