Activation, 1992 Installation – performed with three people, July 28		Gediminas Urbonas studied sculpture at the Art Academy of Vilnius and received a scholarship to further his studies in Austria. In 1988 he began exhibiting his sculptures in Lithuania and working with the performance group “Zalias Lapas.” Since that time he has been represented in several Baltic exhibitions in Europe and has made his solo and collaborative performances in Lithuania and abroad. He creates actions and sculptures that investigate old traditions, rituals and techniques, tending to use gentle humour in depicting human situations. INTERPRETATION Gediminas Urbonas explored the effects of travel and immigration and how they impact personal and social identity. Nest is about four feet high, three feet across, weighs 500 pounds, and has been made from local Banff marble. Large pieces of marble have been broken apart into small stones – a futile gesture of dissecting a huge stone to make tiny stones in order to rebuild them again into an oversized nest. It has parallels to how birds make nests and refers to the labours of love involved in building one’s home and one’s nation. This oversized nest also refers to the importance of security. Yet the nest is empty and speaks to an absence felt in the wake of independence. Perhaps this nest is empty because people can’t get food, workers are losing their jobs and there is an ongoing drought. Families are not flourishing – it’s a moment of stasis and wonder to see how things will proceed. Stone is a material that Urbonas has worked with a great deal, using it to point to the difficulties or heaviness of life. Urbonas has also been involved with a group called Zalias Lapas, a performance group who have created actions. In many cases these events have been rituals for the group to explore identity and build up trust. For this exhibition, he created a performance piece called Activation where three burlap sacks hung from the ceiling like body bags filled with the bodies of Gediminas Urbonas, Andris Breze and Reece Metcalfe. The piece is based on the rituals of South American native tribes who would hang in a fetal position before going to battle in order to gather strength and gain composure. This performance continued for many hours, exposing a number of different psychological states from vulnerability to determination, stubbornness and resilience. It seemed a cathartic experience for the viewers as well as the performers. C.V.
Activation, 1992
Black Box, 1992 Detail 64 x 77 x 14cm
Black Box, 1992 64 x 77 x 14cm
Nest, 1992 103 x 93 x 3.8 cm		Nest, 1992 103 x 93 x 3.8 cm

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