In the Ústí nad Labem House of Art, a new experimental film by the international artistic duo of Lukáš Marxt and Jakub Vrba will be watchable through the gallery's window as part of the exhibition Úžas – tak akorát moc velké okno někam a nikam (Amazement — Just the Right Size of the Window to Nowhere and Somewhere) until the end of April. The private premiere will take place on March 10, 2021, and the screening will be on view every day from 5 pm to 9 pm. The film was made at the beginning of February in the Ústí nad Labem summer cinema. The exhibition also includes another experimental screening that will take place every Wednesday and Saturday from 6 pm. Both the previous joint works (Beautifully Maintained and Well Located; two-channel video installation In a Beautiful and Quiet Location) and the new individual work will be presented. The method of installation points to the difficult exhibition conditions during the pandemic measures and metaphorically expresses the opacity of the current social situation.

Both artists studied at the University of Art and Design in Linz and their collaboration began to develop in 2015, during the shooting of the two-channel video In a Beautiful and Quiet Location near the settlements of Přebuz, Nejdek and Sokolov. In their joint work, the artists work as explorers, trackers and pioneers capturing the environment both in remote landscapes and familiar locations. Marxt's main means of expression is the film processing of specific spaces. Jakub Vrba works with various media, mainly in a performative way. By combining these two approaches, the duo creates video performances with a characteristic form and narration. They try to explore and convey to the viewer a personal experience with space. To do this, they use pyrotechnic effects that define the space, and with long and static shots, the viewer can perceive the space differently than with a normal physical experience.

Although the summer cinema is located in the city centre and can accommodate up to 14,000 spectators, at all times the place is very quiet. This fact was one of the reasons why the artists decided to make their film in this location. Thanks to the oversized scale of the auditorium and the stage, Marxt and Vrba were able to explore a hypothetical collective and individual experience with the space. One part of the film is expressed from the individual point of view by the character in motion. On the other hand, there is a strong moment in the film when the shot is stabilized and the void of the huge space that could be shared in the community starts dominating the overall mood. The artists were fascinated by the fact that the cinema does not serve its purpose despite the fact that it is perfectly maintained. It was as if the place was waiting to be filled and brought back to life. To a certain extent, the authors follow a utopian and idealistic moment. It is up to the society to make an effort to restore the community sharing of the space. Another reason for deciding to shoot in the summer cinema was the authors’ interest in the film screening itself. This can be seen in their approach to the presentation of their own works.

The exhibition Úžas – tak akorát moc velké okno někam a nikam (Amazement — just the right size of the window to nowhere and somewhere) is freely connected to the exhibition project Mo(nu)mental topography, organized by the Faculty of Art and Design of the Jan Evangelista Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem in 2018 and in which artists responded mainly to local historical and political context.