Walking into the familiar turbine hall at Tate Modern, London, visitors are recently greeted by what appears to be an impressively large (yet not imposing - perhaps due to its 5 ft elevation from the ground) shipping container. Quite simply, the latest cross-genre minimalist-installation-sculpture by Polish artist Miraslaw Balka is designed to fit into its surrounding seamlessly and craftily.
However, walking up the ramp that leads into the dark abyss is simply magical. Greeted with your own fears, the moment when you reach out in front of you to mind your step - only to find that you can't see your hands in front of your face - is the moment that you understand the darkness in Balka's How It Is.
Mesmerising and poignant, the exciting venture into the unknown makes you appreciate what you can see in your life, and what there is to be unseen. This being said, the installation is not about blindness, but perhaps taking from granted everything you understand to be rational and explanatory in your own life. Furthermore, it is only when you are placed in an environment where everyone is blind, that you can bump into a complete stranger and share a special moment of apologetic sympathy and do nothing but laugh and move on. An experience shared.
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