Force 4: Amplification by Paul Nikk

VIDEO Paul Nikk

Can a photograph be time-based? How long does it take and what does it take for a photograph to lose its essence and change?

A camera and a scene were set up. Instead of taking a picture, the record button was pressed, and the camera recorded the scene in front of it until it changed enough to be considered a different scene from the initial one.

Force 4: Amplification was created by Paul Nikk as a part of Force. In this piece, a block of ice containing a fully corroded metal axe is suspended by 2 strips of used medical gauze which are tied to a thin corroded pole. In the back of this scene, behind the fence, there's greenery. Ice slowly melts while natural elements fill the visual and sonic spaces of the piece. Once the ice has melted enough, the axe disappears from the frame by falling into the unknown space, leaving only the medical gauze and sounds behind, changing the scene in front of the lens completely.

The starting point for both Force and Paul’s other project, Heaven and hell are within us, was a razor blade – what does it mean, what possibilities does it hold and what does it evoke. While in the latter project it developed in the direction of creating new connotations from photographic pairs, in “Force” it went in the direction of an open discussion regarding personal histories and their connections to events that occur today, the idea of punishment and award, and personal experience as a ground where the power of force is felt to its maximum capacity - as a word, natural occurrence, attack, a new life, end of a life, or any other way in which it is constantly happening. The series consists of 9 images, 2 videos and 2 objects.