Enej Gala, Tomi Novak: Trachea

The Trachea spatial-sound installation in the Kostanjevica tunnel is emerging as a dialogue between visual artist Enej Gala and musician Tomi Novak.

Trachea is a multimedia art project that sees the two tunnels beneath Kostanjevica as a metaphorical trachea and esophagus—passageways through which trains, cyclists, and pedestrians flow from both sides of the hill. The installation, dedicated to wind instruments powered by air, creates a unique visual and sonic experience and encourages interaction with passersby along the pedestrian section of one of the tunnels.

Light wind sculptures hang above visitors’ heads, stretched across a wire mesh. The hanging sculptures respond to the movement of air currents, creating a living soundscape in dialogue with Tomi Novak’s musical composition, which fills the tunnel space through two loudspeakers. Inspired by paper kites, wind chimes, and kinetic sculptures from various cultures, the installation expands the expressive possibilities of contemporary puppetry within the tunnel’s specific, acoustically and atmospherically rich environment.

The soundscape transforms the experience of this transit space into a spontaneous sound theatre that accompanies those who pass through. At the same time, the installation reflects on historical eras and the symbolism of the tunnel over time, questioning themes from prehistoric caves to the most modern tunnels that have always driven humanity to reshape nature in one way or another.

In his new spatial installation Trachea in the tunnel under Kostanjevica in Nova Gorica, which was created in dialogue with Tomi Novak, Enej Gala extends his sculptural work into the field of sound art. The hanging sculptures, made from found objects and sustainable materials, are designed to respond to air movement with a sounding and mechanical hum.

Enej Gala (1990) lives and works between London, Venice and his native Nova Gorica. He studied painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice (BA 2013, MA 2015), with a one-year exchange at the Willem De Kooning Academy (2014), and completed a postgraduate programme at the Royal Academy Schools in London (2023). Gala has exhibited in solo and group exhibitions in major institutions, galleries, biennials and independent art spaces worldwide. In 2024 he was a finalist for the Mark Tanner Sculpture Award and his video Minozaver was selected for screening on Big Screen Southend at Focal Point Gallery.

Tomi Novak (1985) is a composer, sound designer, instrumentalist, music producer and organiser from the Littoral region. He is active in KUD Zvočni izviri, with which he organises the international Brda Contemporary Music Festival, and in the Association of Humanists of Goriška, with which he organises the City of Books festival. He is an instrumentalist in the Kombo ensembles and has produced a number of albums for KUD Zvočni izviri. He has also composed music for several documentaries and feature films. In 2021 he founded the music collective Grunt, with which he regularly composes and records music for these works and gives concerts at home and abroad.

The project is led by GONG Gallery and is part of GO! 2025 official programme.