The figure floating from the ceiling is undefinable. The supine object with the silicone connectors is also not easy to interpret. Both works are conglomerates of fabrics and artificial fur, glass, silicone and metal. The works of the duo Pakui Hardware, which consists of Neringa Černiauskaitė (*1984 in Klaipeda, Lithuania) and Ugnius Gelguda (*1977 in Vilnius, Lithuania), seem like science fiction figures or elements made real.

The name Pakui comes from multi-faceted Hawaiian mythology. Pakui is a spirit, servant or guardian who assists the mother goddess Haumea (also known as Papa) and can travel around all six islands at high speed. Figuratively, the duo's works are materializations (hardware) of complex issues in technology, biology, and economics. The title of the two works in the evn collection, Extrakorporal, refer to medicine: an extracorporeal circuit, for example, is circulation of blood that takes place outside the body. During major surgeries, such an additional apparatus is necessary so that organs can be temporarily supplied.

As an historical comparative image to the floating body, Joseph Beuys interacting with a coyote wrapped in felt in the legendary 1974 action I like America and America likes me comes to mind. The tendency towards the shamanic can also be found in Pakui Hardware’s works and installations. In a synthesis of technical-looking apparatuses and mythological elements, they question the belief in unconditional progress in economy and technology. Works such as Extrakorporal, with their fragility and peculiarity, also support the viewer in reflecting on resources and how we deal with them.

Heike Maier Rieper, 2022 (translation: Virginia Dellenbaugh)