Hello
My name is Timothe Fernandez I am 24 years old I am a metal
sculptor
My series of sculptures entitled Spomenik is
inspired by the eponymous buildings located in present-day former
Yugoslavia: Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro...
The term Spomenik,
in the Slavic language, means monument or
memorial.
These
buildings were erected by the Communist Party to celebrate the
martyrs of the liberation war against Nazi Germany.
Their
function then evolved.
They served communist propaganda and as a
gathering place and symbol of unity for peoples.
During
the fall of the Soviet Union, the break-up of Yugoslavia and the
Serbo-Croat civil war, the spomenik symbolizing the communist ideal
and peace between the two peoples were mostly destroyed or abandoned,
radically changing their forms. These new forms now symbolize the
conflict between these peoples and the fall of the old
regime.
Around this subject I work on the inversion of the
symbolism of a monument over time. Their forms having evolved, they
no longer fulfil their function, they remain only their plastic and
architectural interest.
With these five sculptures I choose
to symbolize the fall/collapse not by pieces destroyed, collapsed and
corroded but in an in-between situation, a blur, an indefinite
temporality, illustrated by the balance/unbalance of my pieces.
One
may wonder if the form is falling? or if is it being erected? or even
frozen in this two different periods
For most of my sculptures
I used a technique similar to origami by folding and welding.
Some
are made of the same steel sheet.
Thanks to the Button
welding technique (the welding points gradually come to press the
sheet metal) I can force it to conform to the desired shape without
having to hammer, heat or machine the sheet metal, which would impact
its finish. Thanks to this technique I create a smooth curve that
gives movement to the piece and reflects either a crushing under its
own weight or a slenderness of the shape.
This technique is
complex because the welds must all be quite strong, the part being in
tension, the risk being that it disintegrates suddenly.
Contrary
to what one might think, my sculptures are hollow and therefore more
fragile than they seem.
Before closing the part I pour lead
which allows to create this impression of imbalance.
This
allows the removal of the base, and visually it aerates the room.
Moreover, without a base they do not have a fixed place of
exposure, making their current presence questionable.
My parts
are autonomous or can once assembled in the same place communicate
with each other.
My patina work beyond the enhancement of the
piece and the strong interest I have in this discipline allows me to
represent the piece either with its original color or with the
oxidation of it by time.
