The concept behind the artwork Sun/Leaf further develops what artist Andres Reisinger has already started with Odyssey, the exhibition staged at Nilufar Gallery in September 2021: the introduction of a new way of experiencing art through a hybrid of physical and digital.

The installation at Collectional, Reisinger’s first ever public art piece, consists of a digital artwork (named Sun) and its physical counterpart (named Leaf) placed in the outdoor area of the gallery; the digital artwork will consist of a 90 seconds audiovisual loop piece displaying a subtly animated landscape and will be projected onto a led wall placed at the borders of a water feature outside the gallery; the physical artwork, a chromed metal armchair, will be staged in the pond, at contact with water, in front of the led screen. Reisinger has conceived the artwork as one unicum piece, composed of its digital and physical halves; the artist’s intention is to keep them tied forever, so whoever buys it will collect both elements.

When developing the installation Reisinger acknowledged and gathered vigorous elements of nature and considered the surrounding environment an integral part of his piece. The structural, cold and modern lines of the physical context own a fictional atmosphere that Reisinger juxtaposes to a natural and ethereal outdoor ambience, window to his own world, depicted in the digital artwork. 

“The first thing that springs to mind when I think of nature, the main inspiration for this piece, is a tree or any kind of plant with leaves; I think it is one of nature's most iconic symbols because it reflects so many of its aspects. On one side, it manifests nature's power and strength as it allows a seed put in the ground to grow into a leaf or a full plant. Likewise, that same leaf also provides nutrients for other organisms in the planet, symbolising the cycle of life in nature. On the other hand, the sun affects everyone and everything on the planet in some manner: it allows plants to grow, regulates the weather, temperature, and oceans, and provides light. It is crucial to many natural processes; and even though it resides millions of kilometres away, its immense energy continues to have an influence on our life” Reisinger declares.

Through the uncanny play of physical and digital elements, Sun/Leaf is set to provoke viewers and have them wonder about what is being seen. The realistic aesthetic of the digital artwork and the position of the different elements in relation to the space, each other and water, are meant to instill in viewers doubts on their origins and nature. Is the armchair coming out of the water? Or does it originate in the digital sphere? Is the digital artwork a reproduction of an environment existing in the physical dimension, or is it fictional? What is real and what isn’t? Which one is the digital landscape? 

Reisinger’s work invites us to question the relevance of the word “real” when discussing the digital and physical worlds; both realms are real, both are existing. We are looking towards a new future enriched by both experiences.