ULTRA-ORA x RADVLAD

Nesting the Unknown

‘Nesting the Unknown’ is an immersive work that explores how fear of the unknown can give birth to new folklore. The work looks at how queer bodies can be misunderstood, othered, and turned into something strange or mythical. By using identity-building as a methodology, ULTRA-ORA and RADVLAD explore how stories, stereotypes, and mythological associations can shape the way bodies are perceived.

In this mixed-media installation, audiences enter the mind and room of a cryptid hunter — someone who investigates unidentified and mysterious creatures. Through memorabilia, photographs, videos, and research surrounding an imaginary being, the audience gradually pieces together the hunter’s story and begins to question what is real, what is imagined, and who gets to define the unknown.

ULTRA-ORA is the artistic practice of Arva Bustin. Through storytelling, she approaches social and political topics using archetypes, symbolism, and character-building. She creates worlds layered with different conceptual narratives, in which characters and objects tell stories through performance and exhibitions. Her craft becomes a vehicle for telling branching, interconnected storylines that address political issues, identity, and history.

RADVLAD is the name under which North Macedonian, Rotterdam-based artist Vladimir Vidanovski works. His work explores the flux of identity and truth through the manipulative properties of the image, and how image culture circulates and evolves in the digital age. His practice involves creating worlds and characters through photography, film, sound, and performance. Drawing from his own memories, desires, and observations from his online wanderings, he creates works that question reality through technological advancements, identity politics, queerness, and the vastness of the human mind.