In the game “the floor is lava”, both danger and safety are turned into topography of the imagination. Viktor Petrov’s installation is built upon the inherent principles of this game, which apply only within the drawn boundary of the four walls: naïve and violent impulses unfold, physics is suspended, reality and reason are torn from their bounds, dimensions are unstable. Beyond it – the floor is lava. The installation is built on a modular principle, based on the metal constructor set from „Märklin“ company, which as many other German companies has switched its production from civil to military products in both World Wars.

The exhibition evokes childhood memories and thus also our existential longing for protection and shelter. This shelter, however, is not a physical place – it is rooted beyond the world of the tangible and remains reserved only for oneself, similar to the soft architecture of a blanket that serves as a fort, a tent, or a shield pulled over the head.

Text: Marina Slavova