A Boy and a House ³⁺

The performance A Boy and a House was inspired by the wordless picture book by Maja Kastelic. It tells the story of a boy who travels in time and space, from darkness toward daylight, from the ground floor to the roof; so of a boy who travels from bottom up and from darkness toward light. The boy walks around the nostalgic old house that is full of stairs that are never the same and worn objects with their own stories. Pictures on the walls seem strangely familiar to us, and bookshelves are full of books with selected titles. There are mysterious and less mysterious messages in less hidden and hidden places ... And a net of space and time, a net of culture and identity is being woven around the boy and viewers.

A Boy and a House is the first picture book by Maja Kastelic. For the book illustrations, she received the Hinko Smrekar Plaques at the 11th Slovenian Biennial of Illustration. The picture book was two years in the making. We can leaf through the book quickly and experience the beauty of the world of the artist on an aesthetic level. But if we dedicate more time to it, the book is a real treasure trove of symbols, mysteries, and hints. It hides much more than just a story about a boy and his journey. In fact, it is a secret lexicon of literature, fairy tales and illustrations, and in many details it opens intimate spaces within us.