STEFAN HERDA: A DIFFERENT KIND OF LANDSCAPE

Opening Reception: Friday, November 23rd, 7-9pm
Exhibition Dates: November 24 – December 29, 2018
Location: Project Studios, 184 Munro Street (rear)

Project Studios is pleased to host an exhibition of work by artist Stefan Herda, curated by Callum Schuster.

Artist Statement:

“My work reflects upon natural processes and phenomena with an alchemical curiosity. Through material investigations, process based experimentation and field research, I try to negotiate our often troubling relationship to nature while reconnecting with forgotten technologies and alternative means of making.

My current work combines wood formations with different household and industrial chemicals to create objects that suggest natural geological formations: geodes, mineral specimens and natural curios. As we all know, most natural crystal formations form slowly over time due to geological forces, such as sedimentation, erosion, and geothermal activity. However, my work acts as a simulation or stand in by mimicking these natural processes using provisional chemistry from a suburban environment. These objects are assembled through forays through hardware stores, industrial zones and nature alike, realized through both experimental and traditional means of sculptural technique. Considering these glaring contrasts, I hope to assess if my objects will elicit the same sense of curiosity as a geode formed by the earth millions of years ago.

Through intervention and illusion, I question the artist’s storied role in illustrating natural phenomena and how one’s aesthetic interpretation can blur lines between reality and fiction. I hope to suggest a possible reality where these objects could exist to foster new understandings and considerations towards our ever-shifting relationship to both the natural and manufactured processes around us.”

Stefan Herda employs intuitive scientific methodology in his practice. Herda’s work explores our often troubling relationship to the nature while reconnecting with outmoded technologies and various alternative means of production. Many of his experiments reflect upon geological and natural phenomena using provisionally sourced materials from the domestic environment.

Stefan received his BAH from the University of Guelph in 2010. His work in both sculpture and video has been included in exhibitions nationally. Stefan recently held a solo show at Wil Kucey Gallery (Toronto), presented video and sculptural installations for Cultivars: Possible Worlds at InterAccess (Toronto) and was featured as one of 12 artists in the Cabinet Project in collaboration with the Fields Institute of Mathematics and the Physics Department at the University of Toronto.