Vilim halbarth / Flying boats

Living in the proximity of shipyard has certainly affected Vilim Halbarth, which is confirmed yet again with this exhibition. Among slipways, tin plates and pipes, these arrangements made of steel, he feels like being in a dear neighbourhood. Not only is he attached to this metal world, but also to the people, workers that bend, cut and weld tin plates; he associates and works with ship builders who gladly help him.

We remember Halbarth’s sculptures and installations made of bloated, intertwined pipes that seem like thick drawings in space. In this exhibition, however, on display are thin steel bar constructions he flexes and connects, inspired by ship lines. Bars serve only to outline spaces, ellipsoid cores, constructions to which we can add imaginary surface areas, provisory membranes, leaving initiative to the observer. These constructions remind of vessel, submarine and airship prototypes that can either surge into the sky or swoop down into the sea. These sculptures-constructions are technically precise, mostly symmetrical, slightly decorative and disciplined, however, they do not restrain the observer’s imagination.

In relation to Halbarth’s earlier phases with big formats reminding of work stations, slipways and ship hulls in size, these newest constructions are chamber-sized, warm, and within hands’ reach. This does not prevent us from imagining them as bigger versions of their actual selves and embarking on them to sail the sky or the sea, depending on our will.

Ivo Babić