Máté Dobokay, Áron Kútvölgyi-Szabó – Helmer-Transformations

HELMER-transformations is a joint exhibition by Máté Dobokay and Áron Kútvölgyi-Szabó. This show is not only a juxtaposition of the artworks; it is a result of their shared work and thinking process. The word transformation in the title refers to the source of the raw images but also to the method of processing. Both in the literal and abstract sense of the word, creation always revolves around some kind of transformation, whether it is medial or manual. The foundation of this collaboration lies in the work of Helmer Bäckström (1891–1964), a Swedish photographer, professor, writer, and collector. Bäckström served as the first photography teacher at the Royal Technological Institute of Sweden, and his digitized body of work forms the core collection of two museums in Stockholm. This newly discovered material became the connecting link, the starting point of the works by the two artists, using appropriation and remaking. Surprisingly, the collection overlapped and visually related to the artists’ earlier works, providing an ideal platform for their collaborative efforts preceding the exhibition. By incorporating experimental methods and media transformations, the artists created images with photographic techniques never employed before. Thus, concepts such as recreation and reconstruction were explored through various themes, including the relationship between image and space, image and medium, and image as both object and space.
Áron Kútvölgyi-Szabó’s doctoral research delves into the role of imagery and spatiality in knowledge. The image appears as a medium of information, that, in line with representation, necessarily obscures, distorts or misinterprets certain details. Kútvölgyi attempts to create a spatial experience by folding and deforming his multi-view artworks.
Máté Dobokay’s works highlight the significance of photography as a medium, as a base that can be shaped that the artist combines with education and knowledge transfer. His experimental artworks reflect contemplation about the structure of the photograph itself as well as the expansion of the medium’s boundaries.