Johana Novotná↓

About the work

The Last Ruralvlog In This World

My diploma work is based on my two earlier final papers (bye above rubies, 2020, and the land of deep valleys, 2021). It directly follows up on them, and they together form a trilogy.

The aspect interconnecting the work is the character of my alter ego Johuš Matuš, who develops it from his own perspective. He began in 2013
by creating audiovisual contents dealing with the subjects of ruralism and existentialism. This resulted in a specific musical genre of rural pop, which examines relationships and dualisms, such as: an individual vs. society, city (center) vs. countryside (periphery), rural boorishness vs. urban etiquette, the pure vs. the rotten, mysticism and spiritualism (the towns of Nová Paka and Semily) vs. the visible world, instinctive vs. rational behavior, and so on.

The reference frame of rural pop is the countryside (specifically, the Semily region in Sub-Giant Mountains) where I come from, and everything that derives from it or directly relates to (or against) it.

Upon establishing myself on the Czech alternative music scene but, simultaneously, upon the arrival of the pandemic and the consequent impossibility to perform in concerts, I began to pursue the medium of painting in the role of my alter ego. The character of Johuš Matuš thus entered the gallery and art context with all the connotations he bears. The third part of the trilogy focuses on this expansion – from the musical context to the artistic one.

In terms of form and genre, the film is multifaceted. I employ the principles of feature, narrative film, news-coverage approach, (meta)documentary, animated film, found footage and, last but not least, vlog and music-video aesthetics, and a record of a performance. At the same time, I, in the process, leave a lot of space for improvisation and content contributions to the personalities I have invited to cooperate (Julie Černá, Albert Romanutti, Marie Ladrová, Pavel Borovička).

I would liken the film to the fusion of a vlog, a meta-document, a film essay, a feature film, and a music video.

All the employed approaches closely communicate with each other, intertwine and, in terms of content, result in a story based on the world of rural pop.

When I think about the attention this work desires to attract in today’s world, I conclude I almost always think on a local scale. One of the most important things to me is the particular environment in which the work originates and then communicates with it using a specific language.

Comprehensibility is important to me: I take everyone, down to the most naïve spectator untouched by the world of art, into account. However, there are limits – as, for instance, concerns humor and specific cultural references. But most of all, my work craves the attention of the today’s and, potentially, future fans of Johuš Matuš.