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Whisper of the Water: From a Dried-Up Reservoir to an Art Project

Driving along the serpentine mountain road, I passed a reservoir, its waters usually shimmering in the sunlight. This stunningly beautiful place, which supplied most of Catalonia with water, was always reflected so vividly in my car’s mirrors. But on that day, something was different.

I slowed down, ensuring the road behind me was clear, and turned my gaze to the side. The water was gone! For the first time, I saw the bare, desolate bottom of the reservoir, and in it — a solitary Romanesque church. Once submerged, only the very tip of its tower was barely visible above the water’s surface, but now it stood exposed, an eerie relic in the midst of the dried-out landscape.

All the rest of the drive, I couldn’t stop thinking about what I had seen. I knew that the drought in the region was serious — the news had reported on it, with showers on the beaches being turned off, water restrictions in gyms, and other measures. But I didn’t realize how critical the situation was.

When I returned home, I began researching the issue. Catalonia was experiencing one of the most severe droughts in the past hundred years. I found photos of the dried-up reservoir, and its cracked bed. These images were etched into my memory and wouldn’t let me rest. I knew one thing clearly: we couldn’t summon the rain god, but Concept2048 had to do something.

Thus began the work on the large Whisper series, and its first part, — Whisper of the Water. We decided to tell the story of the drought, not through bare facts, but using visual language to show nature. This seemed to whisper in exhaustion about its disappearance, pleading for help.

Through Whisper, we want to convey an important message: the planet’s resources are limited, and they are disappearing right now. We cannot afford to ignore this.

This project is not just an artistic work; it’s our personal way of reminding the world of its fragility. The series started with the empty reservoir, and continues with each new part of the project.

Whisper of the Mountains was presented at the art biennale in Andorra last year. Whisper of the Sea has being exhibited in Venice, and Whisper of the Forest is now in the process of creation.

We are happy to communicate crucial issues through visual art, and truly believe it can bring attention to problems that often remain unnoticed.

In the photo: Whisper of the Water, the dried-up reservoir bottom, the stiff shells that once lived on trees submerged in water, and the Song of the Water.

The Cry of the Artist
or
Art as the Voice of Nature: The Story of Creating the Whisper Project

The art of Concept2048 is always a story that we want to share, one that needs to be told, and sometimes — one that needs to be shouted about!

You may remember that the Venice Biennale is currently underway, where we are participating. Our multimedia exhibition Whisper of the Sea is proudly displayed at Palazzo Bembo under the patronage of the European Cultural Centre (ECC).

The exhibition is open until October 24th, and we look forward to seeing you among our guests,  and hearing your feedback.

But do you know how this project started? Indeed, Whisper of the Sea is just a small part of a larger project named Whisper.

Each of our projects begins with something personal, a moment that does not let go until it materializes into art. This was also the case with the Whisper series.

It all started with an incredible drought that struck Catalonia. I often had to drive from Andorra to Barcelona, and on one such route, I saw something I couldn’t forget…

In the next post, we will tell the story of the beginning of work on Whisper, and why it has become so important to us.

Believe me, there is more to it than just being inspired by nature. It is a story that gripped us… And perhaps, it will leave you moved as well.

New ideas, new artworks, new us

PS For those who didn’t recognize it, in the last photo we are in the active shooting phase

Ordino Jardins d’Art and Soul’s Garden: A Look Back

The event was incredibly warm and relaxed! Locals and tourists alike were genuinely excited about the exhibition and the chance to immerse themselves in art that is both complex and provocative. We received a wave of enthusiastic feedback, and countless questions about the Soul’s Garden project. We’re thrilled that it’s challenging. yet important, concept resonated with people’s hearts, and we’re deeply grateful for their empathy.

It’s an amazing feeling to know that your projects awaken something within the viewers, resonate with them, make them reflect, look within themselves, and see the world from a new perspective.

You can see how it all went in the video gallery above⬆️

Only two days!

In 2023, the Andorran village Ordino, was listed as the best tourist villages by the World Tourism Organization.

The Ordino Jardins d'Art exhibition will be held in this amazing place on August 31 and September 1 — that is, this weekend.

Painting, photography, graffiti, sculpture, and other areas will be represented by 20 artists, and artistic communities, from different countries. The jury that selected the participants consisted of officials from the Ministry of Culture of Andorra, the municipality of Ordino and other reputable persons from the field of art, including a representative of the Carmen Thyssen Museum Andorra.

The duo Concept2048 at Ordino Jardins d'art will open to the public their new project "Soul's Garden".

Details are on the way...😉

There’s no evil without good

I'm not a fan of Taylor Swift, but I have great respect for her work, and the impact she has on pop culture. And, I realize perfectly well how unpleasant it can be for an artist to cancel his performance, exhibition, or show 😔

The Austrian authorities had to cancel three Swift concerts due to security threats. But hundreds, thousands, of fans of the artist, from all over the world, have already gathered in Vienna! What should the swifties do (that's what the singer's fans are called)? How to smooth things over and sweeten the pill?

City Managers have come up with an ingenious plan: to cancel the entrance fee to museums. And it worked!

For example, the Albertina Art Museum alone received more than 20,000 visitors last weekend. Such a large number of art lovers are attracted only by landmark exhibitions, and only 2,000 people come there on a typical weekend.

The Swifties even lined up outside and waited in the heat for about half an hour to get inside.

The museum administration has also replaced the musical accompaniment — classical music always sounds in the halls, but not last weekend, when visitors and exhibits enjoyed the singer's albums.

The rest of the cultural institutions that took part in the campaign, and souvenir shops, too, were not left out.

And, to you, friends, how is this initiative? Would Taylor Swift's music be appropriate, say, in the Tretyakov Gallery? 😉

🖤 Promised magic and craquelures

On the website of the Rijksmuseum — the national Museum of the Netherlands — you can see the very wonderland that I wanted to show you.

This is a unique photograph of Rembrandt's Night Watch. Looks like an ordinary photo of a great canvas. But don't rush to judge, friends! Click on the image, now again... And again...
Well? 😉

We have a unique opportunity to examine every hair of the heroes of the plot, every seam and fold of their clothes, every stroke of paint applied by the master's brush. Take a closer look at how painstaking, thorough, and accurate the work was done by the artist.

The smallest nuances, details, shades — we can enjoy all this thanks to not one, (as it seems at first glance), but 528 digital photographs of the masterpiece.

Wandering around the canvas, alternately zooming in and out with the mouse, at some point I felt literally inside the depicted scene. I can't say for sure whether it was the hypnotic influence of Rembrandt's genius, or no less masterfully grouped photos with a resolution of almost 45 megapixels.

By the way, initially, this photo with the maximum zoom of the Watch was made for that very large-scale restoration in 2019. Thanks to it, the specialists working on the restoration of the masterpiece did not have to constantly deal with microscopes.

And now we have the opportunity to study the brilliant artwork in detail.

It's a pity that not all the world's masterpieces can be viewed in great detail like this. After all, even when visiting a museum, it is not always possible to get very close to an exhibit and stay for very long in front of it 🙃

Night Day Watch
(delete unnecessary)

*dedicated to all lovers of looking at craquelure in museums, and running noses through paintings😉

Oh, a long time ago, I attempted to write about this wonderful work, and finally I got my hands on it!

The Night Watch is Rembrandt's most famous painting. At least, that's what the search engines say.

In general, it is called  The performance of the rifle company of Captain Frans Bunning Kok and Lieutenant Willem van Ruytenburch, and the day watch is depicted on it.

The artist experimented a lot with pigments, compositions, colors, varnishes, and some chemical elements simply reacted over time, so the canvas darkened over the years.

It was the dark varnish that formed the idea of the night scene in the last century, and the very «folk» name of the work of the great Dutchman.

In 2019, quite a long, and very painstaking, work began on the restoration of the Watch, and it took place live in a specially equipped glass space and with the assistance of AI.

And there was something to restore: the master finished the painting itself in 1642 — pretty respectable age of work. In 1911 and 1975, people rushed to the Patrol with knives, and in 1990 it was doused with acid, at all.

If we return to chemistry, it has recently become clear how Rembrandt managed to recreate the golden thread on the clothes of Lieutenant Willem van Ruytenburch. The master used various arsenic compounds. Imagine, even poison in the hands of a real artist can become a great art! 🤩

It's scary to imagine what the old masters had to work with: prepare paints from poisons, grind various minerals to get the right pigment, use dried human remains as materials...

Who knows if this had a detrimental effect on their health and shortened their lives, depriving them of the opportunity to create ahead of time? 🤔

"So what's up with the craquelures?" you ask. But I'll tell you about this on Sunday 😉

There will be real magic, don't miss it!