Daniel Vlček: Through the eye of mechanical reproduction

Daniel Vlček is interested in the link between artistic representation and industrial production and the relationship between sound and its visual expression. Certain formats in his body of work have been adapted from forms of industry, a fact attested to by his consistent work with loops and repeated motifs. Originally it was the vinyl records he used as a DJ that defined the character of his paintings, works representing a specific template into which memory has been recorded. It was here that Vlček first tried to carry over musical elements onto the canvas, capturing musical practices via visual and artistic formats. At the same time, this work was based on the visualization of sound that had been the inspiration behind his drawings and paintings. In an almost constructivist way, he had attempted to ward off the surface while recording the rhythm found in the passing of time. This intention can be expressed as a spiral, the visual structure behind the principle of phonograph records. Vlček’s repeated motions based on a template are an intentionally mechanical method often resulting in abstract structures. This end result subverts the usual consequences of mechanical reproduction and draws attention to the true non-mechanical nature of Vlček’s practice.