Si Okarina e Runikut
2015
Brass, clay and stone ocarina
Variable dimensions
Ocarinas, a type of wind instrument, fall from the ceiling or stand on brass perches like birds ready to sing. These simply designed clay instruments resemble their Neolithic forerunners from Kosovo. Si Okarina e Runikut is a mysterious work closely connected to the story of its creator, Petrit Halilaj, and the country he had to flee.
Halilaj's synthetic, fragmentary and poetic installations are steeped in his experience of the ethnic conflict in Kosovo and exile. The media he uses are closely linked to his land and his childhood memories, such as the clay ocarinas he shaped with the knowledge of Shaqir Hoti, one of the last producers of these instruments in Kosovo. His works suggest a powerful, poignant narrative at the crossroads of personal and collective history.
Si Okarina e Runikut was shown for the first time by the Pinault Collection in 2015 at the "Slip of the Tongue" exhibition at the Punta della Dogana.
Halilaj's synthetic, fragmentary and poetic installations are steeped in his experience of the ethnic conflict in Kosovo and exile. The media he uses are closely linked to his land and his childhood memories, such as the clay ocarinas he shaped with the knowledge of Shaqir Hoti, one of the last producers of these instruments in Kosovo. His works suggest a powerful, poignant narrative at the crossroads of personal and collective history.
Si Okarina e Runikut was shown for the first time by the Pinault Collection in 2015 at the "Slip of the Tongue" exhibition at the Punta della Dogana.
Exhibitions
Photo © Fulvio Orsenigo