Maribor, 8. May (STA) – German-Dutch performance and conceptual artist Ulay is opening an installation dubbed “Whose water is it?” in Maribor on Saturday as part of the city’s stint as the European Capital of Culture. The installation focusing on accessibility of water will be on display in and around Maribor’s Judgement Tower until October.

In cooperation with French art collective Societe Realiste, Ulay will set up a water tower made of 800 water bottles, which he has been collecting for over twelve years, and a neon sign with the title question of the installation, which will reflect on the Drava River.

The installation also includes a large iron plate collecting dripping water in a water tank in the upper floor of the venue and a heated metal surface for evaporating water at the bottom of the venue.

“The work represents the dualism of European culture, which separates matter from soul and good from evil,” the organising Institute Maribor 2012 explains.

As part of his half-year stay in Maribor as a resident artist of the European Capital of Culture, Ulay is also to prepare an interactive e-gallery “Earth Water Catalogue” of works of artists focusing on water.

Born in 1943 in Solingen, Germany, Uwe Laysiepen (better known under his artistic name Ulay) moved to Amsterdam in 1968, where he studied photography. He was among the leading representatives of body art and performance in the 1970s.

Ulay, whose recent work has mostly been focused on the issue of drinking water, now lives in Ljubljana, where he co-founded the NASTATI Institute in 2010.