While making the big yellow mould for the project ‘Saint Sebastian and the birds no. 3’, Niko filmed a titmouse at the studio window. The little bird kept flying against the window. Did it see an intruder in the reflection, a potential mate or had it deceptively fallen in love with itself, like Narcissus had with his reflection in the water?
The artwork ‘The Ornithologist’ consists of a pitch-black box in a birdcage. The perches and feeders are attached to the cage, upside down. On top of the cage there is a mirror with an object, a combination of binoculars and VR spectacles.
In order to fully experience the artwork the spectator has to pick up the ‘VR spectacles’ and look. The VR spectacles show the clip of the titmouse in a 360 degrees perspective. The spectator has to move his body to be able to study the bird. Bystanders see the ornithologist holding the VR spectacles make the same movements he would make when observing birds in nature.
The artwork raises questions about what we see and how we see things. Or are we, unawares, being watched ourselves? Are we, like the ornithologist, imprisoned in a pitch-black box, stuck in a certain opinion, perspective or reality? How can we get out?
