CISTERN

Design by Dreamlaser this work became the first installation at the multimedia art space of the same name. The territory of a former brewery in St. Petersburg has recently transformed into a media art platform. The history of the site, its transformation, and exhibition plan reflect its past, present, and future. Inspired by the theme of perceiving the future, Dreamlaser created this installation for the opening of Cistern. 

The main features of the brewery are the fermentation tanks and the transitions between them. Previously, these tanks stored beer; now they, along with the concrete ceiling between the two levels, serve as key architectural elements of the exhibition space. The installation consists of three parts, each embodying metaphors about human perceptions of the future and the desire to understand it. 

Part 1: Cistern 

The future evokes conflicting feelings; we yearn to know and confront it while fearing what lies ahead. In this artwork authors aimed to encapsulate hope in one tank and fear in another. 

Part 2: Holographic Sphere 

The future remains illusory until it arrives. This part invites a thought experiment: what if we glimpse the future and intervene? The sphere viewed by the audience doesn’t exist but feels real, disintegrating like our understanding of the future. 

Part 3: Levels 

The drive to influence the future is inherent in living beings. As we understand the world better, we gain the ability to predict events ranging from weather to supernova explosions. Levels echoes events we can’t trace yet feel their impact.