With sampled image and sound sequences referring to one another in a precisely calculated rhythmic alternation on four projection surfaces, Calin Dan draws a portrait of the city of Bucharest. Dilapidated tower blocks next to estates of terraced houses, Roma families camping with their horses and carts in the wastelands in the midst of the city, broken streets and new shopping paradises – today the formerly communist Bucharest is a city in upheaval, full of social contradictions and oppositions.
Accompanied by "Manele", traditional Romanian folk music, and local hip hop, we follow the footsteps of a figure carrying a door on his back through Bucharest. This absurd figure is taken from Romanian folklore, a "Pacala" (simpleton) of our day. He is both 'city guide' and inhabitant. The tension between the uncontrollable urban proliferation and the capability for improvisation and adaptation of the inhabitants results in the emotional dimension of the city.
1st Biennial of the National Gallery Prague, 2005

Calin Dan, born 1955 in Romania, lives and works in Amsterdam & Bucharest