Dialogue With The Previous

What is tradition? And what is traditional today? What symbolizes our ancetors' traditions and how do we work with them today?
Dialogue With The Previous is another piece of puzzle of Veronika Čechmánková's artistic universum. It focuses on the contrast of old and contemporary worlds. Old traditions are in contrast to the new ones, both sensitively connected through the phenomenon of food and a universal symbol of agriculture - the scythe.

Food is a process that has existed throughout our human history and had a significant impact on our way of living. It is not only a physical need. It is a process, a ritual. It symbolizes something that is continuously existing forever. It is a tradition. To Veronika, bread is a symbol of that tradition, calmness, serenity. It is something that stays with us forever. Scythe is an opposite. It is a traditional agricultural tool that brought us bread before. For today's society the scythe has gained a different function and therefore meaning - it is perceived as a physiotherapy tool. Something that can help today's empty minds to connect with their ancestors and lost mindfulness through traditional physical activity. It is ironical that some of today's scythe workshops that work with this concept of physiotherapy and spiritual exercise impacts are in fact based on returning to the scythe's primal use - agriculture. Therefore the workshops take place back in the fields.

The video Dialogue With The Previous is an ironical contemplative instructive video for today's people. It shows a female instructor (somehow similar to today's yoga instructors but with a traditional folklore scarf on her head) exercising with the scythe. The scythe has handles made out of bread. Everything is accompanied by meditative music and a calm instructive voice. In the back we see bread animations. Motives that remind us again of the clash of the old and new meanings.
The film was shot on the 16mm film that also symbolizes a disappearing tradition in contemporary cinema. In contrast, on the film we see the digital screens with animations in the back. Old and new in a contemplative coexistence. Again.