KEEP EAST EUROPE HAPPY
“Keep East Europe Happy” by Mare Tralle
This installation by Estonian artist Mare Tralle was created in 2001, however, given current events and the still recent expansion of the European Union it caught my eye.
“Keep East Europe Happy” was part of an exhibition titled “Money” at Kulturehuset, Stockholm. The installation was comprised of carpet made out of muscle wire and textile which reacted to both the value of the (now defunct) Deutsche Mark and the movements of people in the gallery. The visitors in the gallery are required to “balance” the movements of the carpet and “keep East Europe happy.”
In 1992 Estonia introduced the Kroon, whose value was tied to the Deutsche Mark. It’s pretty amazing to think that the Deutsche Mark doesn’t even exist anymore, and the Kroon will soon disappear too. And yet, the deeper issues that Mare tackles in her work remain. The reverberations of massive social and economic change continue to resonate deeply in “Eastern Europe,” coupling with shocks from newer and more recent changes. Mare’s work provokes me (in a very personal way)to try to understand this, and that’s why I think her work is so great.