“In a narrow, dim alley a lone steel barrel smolders with an eerie, chemical glow. Acidic flames curl upward, pooling beneath flickering streetlights as the blaze continuously spawns demonic apparitions that stretch and shimmer, their menacing grins seemingly both a warning and an invitation.

The work functions through worldbuilding; populating the scene with elements like graffiti, stickers and various textural details that build on the atmosphere and extend its lived‑in fiction. At the center of the scene is a familiar pop‑cultural trope—the makeshift burn barrel lit by drifters in movies and videogames, here recast as a future version of the traditional bonfire. Once a symbol of community and collective hope, the bonfire here endures only as a corrosive after‑image; its embers flickering with haunted echoes of the past, vague outlines of the present, and dark omens of whatever lies ahead.”

Matej Mihevc (1995) is an interdisciplinary artist working with interactive virtual environments, 3D modeling, sculpting, animation, design, AI tools and various industrial production techniques. He holds a BA in Video and New Media from the Academy of Fine Art and Design (ALUO) in Ljubljana and is currently pursuing an MA at the same institution. His work frequently integrates elements of speculative fiction, world‑building and various pop‑culture tropes and codes. Drawing from post‑internet art, contemporary philosophy, science‑fiction and media theory, he examines how emerging technologies shape the way we engineer desire. He has presented his work in several solo and group exhibitions. He is also the host of Modem, a radio show dedicated to underground internet music.

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»V ozki, mračni ulici samoten kovinski sod žari v zloveščem, kemičnem sijaju. Strupeni plameni se vijejo navzgor in se zbirajo pod utripajočimi uličnimi lučmi, medtem ko ogenj vztrajno poraja demonske duhove, ki se raztezajo in trepetajo medtem ko njihovi zlovešči nasmehi obenem svarijo in vabijo.

Delo se poslužuje principov izgradnje svetov; prizor naseljuje z grafiti, nalepkami in raznolikimi teksturnimi detajli, ki tvorijo atmosfero in poglabljajo njegovo fikcijo. V središču prizora je prepoznavna pop-kulturna referenca – sod, v katerem ljudje na robu družbe v filmih in videoigrah kurijo ogenj je tu predstavljen kot prihodnja različica tradicionalnega kresa. Nekoč simbol skupnosti in kolektivnega upanja, kres tu obstaja zgolj kot jedka paslika; v njegovem žaru odsevajo zastrašujoči odmevi preteklosti, megleni obrisi sedanjosti in mračne slutnje prihodnosti.«

Matej Mihevc (1995) je interdisciplinarni umetnik, ki deluje na področju interaktivnih virtualnih okolij, 3D‑modeliranja, kiparstva, animacije, oblikovanja, orodij umetne inteligence in različnih industrijskih produkcijskih tehnik. Diplomiral je na Oddelku za video in nove medije Akademije za likovno umetnost in oblikovanje (ALUO) v Ljubljani, kjer trenutno zaključuje magisterij. Njegovo delo pogosto združuje elemente spekulativne fikcije, gradnje svetov ter različne pop‑kulturne reference in kode. Z opiranjem na post‑internetno umetnost, sodobno filozofijo, znanstveno fantastiko in medijsko teorijo raziskuje, kako nastajajoče tehnologije oblikujejo načine, na katere se konstruira želja. Svoja dela je predstavil na več samostojnih in skupinskih razstavah. Je tudi voditelj radijske oddaje Modem, posvečene podtalni internetni glasbi.