Hajnal Németh – Truck Facing Eastwards

PARCELLA SERIE 2007

A shiny white tractor-trailer is parked on a vacant lot, facing east, towards the artist’s home in Hungary. Untarnished by company signage, the truck sits on the lot like a giant still-life. Four plates of colored glass surround it, offering distinct vantages with atmospheric effects: «the dark blue of night, a sulfur-yellow fog, a gray cloudy sky and the crimson of sunset». A lyrical text by Hajnal Németh, inspired by a passage from John Cage's Lecture on nothing (from the book, Silence, 1961) is printed on the colored glass windows: «night is falling / maybe baby / I am falling / truly baby». The installation sets up a physical and emotive poem which leads the viewer on a 360° tour around the truck. The shifting focus from the truck to the text, from white to color intimates a cinematic drama as the truck sits in restless anticipation.