The Uncontrollable Flight of Inspiration

Installation

2018

At a time when irrationality and the loss of control seem to have become central themes in our daily lives, Cibulka addresses the need for creative (=active) re-empowerment.
Inspired by the story of Larry Walter, who on July 2, 1982, unintentionally ascended to 4,600 meters on a lawn chair tied to helium balloons, where he crossed paths with an airplane, the artist created a dynamic sculpture that could potentially move uncontrollably around the exhibition space. Latin inscriptions engraved on serpentine tiles counter the lightness of the flying sculpture and its photographic documentations with a grounded materiality.
The inscriptions are not quotes, but proverbs combined by the artist: “Long live (ir)rationality” and “Wise folly and foolish wisdom” allude to the dialectical nature of reason.
Incidentally, after landing between power lines, Larry Walters responded to the question of why he had undertaken such an irrational act: “You can’t just sit around at home and do nothing.”