THE ARCHER NEVER APPEARED AGAIN AND THE DOGS CHANGED TO MOSS ‘The Archer never appeared again and the Dogs changed to moss’ was a solo exhibition of site-specific sculpture and video installation shown at Hordaland Kunstsenter as part of MA week. “In Olga Tokarczuk’s eco-thriller novel, ‘Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead’, the protagonist (Janina Duszejko), follows a mystery that unfolds in the forest surrounding her home. She wanders in a state of enchantment and curiosity, desperately seeking connection to the world, as animals, strange omens, ghostly symbols and the stars above guide her. ‘The Archer never appeared again and the Dogs changed to moss’ is a line borrowed from Tokarczuk’s novel, set in a world that seems to shift between one of ancient fairy-tales and an otherworldly future. Jack O’Flynn’s MA Week exhibition places us in a forgotten forest, in what the artist calls a ‘beyond world’, where animal forms, silver trees and fossilized butterflies guide us through the gallery space of Hordaland Kunstsenter. A portal opens a space for us to walk and wonder in a similar sense as Tokarczuk’s protagonist, longing for connection to a decaying world…” As part of this exhibition a new poem by Maria Sledmere, ‘Neptune in Atrophy’ was commisioned and given to visitors. Soundtrack from the film was created in collaboration with Dalian Rynne. Materials: Found Rhododendron tree, steel, wire, plaster, latex, ceramic, sand, glitter, gold flakes, paint, pigment, sand, rubble, 3-D print. Images: All images courtesy of the artist and Hordaland Kunstsenter.
