Unsound Festival: Peculiar Beauty
Image Courtesy: Art News
The Unsound Festival in Krakow, Poland, is known for their artistic and unconventional themes- each pushing different boundaries unique to the topic. Their 2017 production, though, was a special one- and the planning began as soon as the previous year’s event came to a close. 50 years ago, in 1967, was their first “Summer of Love”, and it was decided to pay homage to that iconic era for this milestone.
While wanting to incorporate the 60’s profound notion of love, festival director Mat Schulz joked that despite it being a hippie festival, event-goers were the kind to brood over end times and dress in black. As the theme was decided to be “Flower Power”, Schulz desperately wanted to break away from the typical assumption it would possess- and set out to retain both the beauty, as well as dystopian darkness, of the 60’s.
They fell upon artist Aleksandra Grünholz, who seemed to have the same notion in mind as Schulz, describing her art as a “botanical explosion” with, “some nasty details” such as mold, thorns, and teeth-like forms amongst the flora and fauna.
The poster she designed for Unsound was filled with both beautiful flumes of petals and lush leaves, but also unsettling and disruptive attributes that broke “flower power” from its girly feminine flair.
The production became multifaceted, much to everyone’s delight, as it encompassed both the light and darkness.
The reconstruction of this topic evokes a sense of curiousness in the audience to ponder how there is an unpleasant undertone to everything captivating and erotic- much like what’s found in plants.
As captivating as the pieces are, they are open to interpretation- as nature should be. Those who just see foliage or curb appeal are missing out on the wonder and discovery the natural world exudes all around us- and perhaps investigating deeper into the motifs of Unsound and Aleksandra Grünholz could make all the difference.
Strike Out,
Writer: Gillian McKendree
Editor: Hali Azpeitia
Tallahassee