About project
About the project
What happens when a planet, a cosmic mechanism and light come together in one place?
Jan Kaláb’s monumental sculpture Black Mechanical Planet draws visitors into a world where geometry meets imagination. A system of interconnected spheres resembles a giant cosmic mechanism, evoking the movement of planets, the mysteries of dark matter and the energies of outer space.
The artist has long drawn inspiration from cosmology and geometric abstraction. In Black Mechanical Planet, he continues his Křížení planet (Crossing Planets) painting series, in which scientific knowledge of the universe takes on an additional symbolic and imaginative dimension.
For Signal Festival, the sculpture will be transformed by a specially created projection. Light travels across its surface, accentuating its structure and bringing a sense of dynamism to the entire object. Black Mechanical Planet is Kaláb’s vision of a universe whose scale, energy and mystery extend far beyond us.
Artist
Jan Kaláb is one of the most prominent contemporary Czech artists. As a graffiti writer known as Cakes, he was among the pioneers of Prague’s underground graffiti and street art scene and, together with the group The DSK, played a significant role in transforming the city’s streets. Since then, his practice has expanded to include sculpture, light installations, painting and NFTs. His multidisciplinary approach is characterised by abstract compositions of organic and geometric shapes and colours that appear to be in constant motion.
Kaláb’s works balance between painting and sculpture, seeking neither to reproduce reality nor to imitate it, but to find beauty in new perspectives. He has exhibited in galleries from New York to Seoul, and his work is held in the collections of the National Czech & Slovak Museum in the United States, Brazil’s Museu Nacional de Belas Artes, as well as those of brands including Dior and Tiffany.
The projection content was created by Czech visual artist Jan Hladil, who studied graphic design and later supermedia at the Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague (VŠUP). He emerged from the VJ scene—in the past, he focused on video installations and creating content for the audiovisual label Lunchmeat, as well as collaborating with Laterna magika. He has presented his audiovisual works at venues such as the National Gallery, the DOX Center for Contemporary Art, the Prague City Gallery, and the Chemistry Gallery; he has also shown his installations in Miami and recently exhibited in Hong Kong. Today, he works under the banner of his own studio, deeper.vision, creating real-time and generative art for large-format LED displays, projection mapping, and laser installations. He views his work as visual activism: an effort to refocus attention on light as civilization’s oldest medium in an era oversaturated with screens.
The soundtrack for the installation was created by Czech music producer Oliver Torr. Oliver Torr is a prominent Czech multidisciplinary artist, sound designer, and composer. He studied music production in London, and his work uniquely blends sound art and avant-garde electronic music with cassette hiss, field recordings, and melancholic vocal lines. For his debut album “Fragility of Context”, he won the prestigious Vinyla music award (Album of the Year 2021). In addition to his solo work, he is deeply involved in composing film scores (e.g., the award-winning films “Banger” as well as the series “Adikts”).
