The exhibition of Lidija Delić’s art installation opened in Dom Omladine (The Youth Centre) on the 9th of August. The West Island is an ambient installation in two rooms of the gallery, three walls in one and one wall in the other room. On the walls of the bigger gallery room, there are three conceptually connected landscapes - one is a dark blue painting of a lighthouse with the light slightly indicated with the accents of red, and on two walls that stand across each other, we can see video artworks. One video is showing a boat slowly coming to the marine, and on the other is the lighthouse that sends red light signals to a boat. Also, the whole room is dark blue with blue shadows and we can hear a signaling sound of the lighthouse. 

Navigation of the boat is represented as it is happening in real time and space. This ambient simulation of real geographical spot sucks in all the visitors into its atmosphere, in a landscape as the artist feel it. This personal view of a landscape, ambient with repetitive sounds of a lighthouse, and blue light all over the place don't leave visitors untouched. The length of the video requires longer stay in the gallery room, so the artist is giving us a sense of real time. The effect of sitting in that room for long is almost hypnotizing - the boat slowly coming to the harbor, blinking light and red signals of the lighthouse that appear in same intervals of time evoke feelings of melancholy, isolation, slow passing time, waiting and a feeling of a place that necessarily provokes the need for the contemplation.

The other room has shining stripes hanging from the wall with the blue light projected onto them. The whole room is dark so the visitor cannot have a sense of space, and each time someone tries to move they hit the wall. This part of the ambient gives the feeling of immobility and claustrophobia, but at the same time - if you don't move you can enjoy beautiful blinking stripes that move slowly creating this imaginary scenery.

Lidija Delic combined imaginary landscape with the actual topos in real space and time, so the firm border of what is the reality is lost. And in this possibility to transfer the exact atmosphere of the geographically specific location with the feeling that she gets by making the audience feel the vibe is a creative power of her artwork.

About the artist

Born in Nikšić, Montenegro in 1986. Lives and works in Belgrade, Serbia. She earned her Ph.D. at the Multimedia Art Department, University of Arts in Belgrade, in 2015. Graduated at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Belgrade, Department of Painting, in 2010. She is a co-founding member of U10 art space in Belgrade, working on managing exhibitions and events.

Website: http://lidijadelic.com