|
EXHIBITIONS NEWS PRESS ABOUT US CONTACT |
||||
 |
|||||
| REPRESENTED ARTISTS | BERTILLE BAK | GWENAEL BELANGER | DEXTER DYMOKE | ANTTI LAITINEN | |
| MARKO MAETAMM | YUDI NOOR | OLIVER PIETSCH | KIM RUGG | ||
| BETTINA SAMSON | SINTA WERNER | ||||
|
|||||
GWENAEL
BELANGER
DANIEL FIRMAN
ORI GERSHT
LORI HERSBERGER
The Hidden
Land
1 MAY - 14 JUNE 2009
Antique
philosophy is at the origin of numerous reflections on the nature of
our world as well as the existence of universes parallel to our reality.
These thoughts were “materialised” in the concept of infinity
- described by the indefinite and complex nature of the physical world
- as well as in the suggestion that a constant and eternel movement
pre-exists in all things.
The Hidden Land (1) is an invitation to reflect on these theories
of multiple worlds and the unidentified zones situated between fiction
and reality. Transcending universal understanding, these remarkable
theories symbolise acts of intellectual humility as the world is indubitably
more vaste and complexe, more unpredictable and colourful, than what
our comprehension, here and now, would want to let us know. (2)
The works presented in the exhibition address issues surrounding the spatiotemporal process, questioning our perception of things through varied mediums and materials as well as the idea that each piece is the comprehensive result of an experimental approach. Each work emphasizes the idea that movement is an intrinsic and permanant flux existing in all things, as well as being the sign and measure of space and time.
Daniel FIRMAN
Grey Matters, 2009
Mixed media
A close, critical observation of what forms a vivid picture in our
everyday world is the starting point for all of Gwenaël
Bélanger’s projects. His approach, he says «
is characterized above all by a “bricoleur” attitude which
consists of playing with the limits of the perception we have of reality
and its grey areas, using graphic and photographic processes. I want
to exploit the interaction between what we see and what we imagine,
or what we recall, in the various human activities. » The video
“Le Tournis” embodies perfectly this exploratory vision
of our day-to-day; it is one of those “machinations of the gaze”
through which forgotten or inaccessible visual zones emerge.
“Le Tournis” is a 6 minute looped video showing an interior
space (the artist’s studio) from a central viewing point. The
camera continually revolves on itself, scanning the space at high
speed. In this repetitive 360° panorama, an event arises. Progressively,
at the top of the screen, a slight sparkling appears. Then something
falls. We then identify, gradually, that a multitude of mirrors come
crashing to the ground. (3)
Gwenaël Bélanger
Le Faux Mouvement, 2008
Daniel Firman’s work stems from the field of
sculpture in the broadest sense, considering each piece as an “environment-system”.
Ideas, forms, as well as scales, signifiers and references meet and
dialogue within the work to form unexpected and yet eloquent lectures.
This versatility logically leads to the use of diverse mediums and
conceptual approaches. The idea of energy and movement is notably
at the centre of his preoccupations, expressed through the theme of
the fall, his interest in choreography or through the so-called untraceable
forms defined by the phenomenon of deflection or stealth technologies.
Firman’s minimalist, almost scientific, approach to the phenomena
and matter surrounding us shows a profound sensorial acuity in the
detection of these minute, unstable or unexplored zones where language
finds itself reinstated.
Ori Gersht uses the medium of photography to develop specific environments in which the image explores personal and collective memory through geographies and metaphysical spaces – and also reflects on advanced technologies in photography such as freeze-framing actions. Through a filmic trilogy composed of a series of photographs, Gersht addresses what Walter Benjamin called “the optical unconscious”, and namely the moments exposed by photography which the eye cannot perceive. Inspired by the frozen aspect of a classical still-life, the series “Falling Bird”, evoking a particular painting by Chardin, shows the slow fall of a bird into a dark liquid surface. The long journey, orchestrated by gravity and given rhythm by the camera, underlines the tension created when a body passes from one state to another. Creating a multitude of micro-events, the slow motion and the decomposition of movements thereby intensify the action, triggering chain reactions reminiscent of a geological disaster.
(1) “The Hidden Land”
is the name of a sacred region, of extremely difficult access, situated
in the Himalayan mountains. It is considered to be one of the
most secret places in the world. Even the satellites are unable
to show details of this area, which is perpetually covered in
mist and shadowed by immense mountains. This area perfectly illustrates
the thin line separating reality and fiction and the idea that
a fictitious world is only so according to whether we believe
in it or not. It is typically the case for this place as the
legend says that one must believe in its existence and reach
a certain level of spirituality to be able to access it.
(2) See Théodore Bachelet and Louis Charles Dezobry in Dictionnaire
général des lettres, des beaux-arts et des sciences morales
et politiques, Paris, Delagrave, 1876
(3) Text by Gwenaël Bélanger
Gwenaël
Bélanger was born in Rimouski, Quebec in 1975. He lives and works
in Montréal (Canada).
Solo show (selection): OEuvres récentes, Galerie Graff, Montréal
(2008) ; Poursuivre le hors-champ, Galerie de l’UQAM, Montréal
(2008) ; Courir les rues, Optica, Montréal (2006) ; Le Point
à la ligne, Galerie Graff, Montréal (2004). Group show
(selection) : Décoratif! Décoratif?, traveling exhibition
organised by le Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec,
Québec (2008) ; La Triennale québécoise - Rien
ne se perd, rien ne se crée, tout se transforme, Musée
d’art contemporain de Montréal (2008) ; L’oreille
dans l’oeil, Centre Clark, Montréal (2007), La Collection
: Acquisitions récentes, Musée d’art contemporain
de Montréal (2006).
Daniel Firman was born in Bron (France) in 1966. He lives and works
in Paris and Lyon (France).
Solo show (selection): Galerie Alain Gutharc, Paris (2009) ; Arte headquarters,
in partnership with the FRAC Alsace, Strasbourg (2008) ; Würsa
(à 18000 km de la Terre), Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2008) ; Le
foulard d'Isidora, French Cultural Center, Milan, Italy (2006) ; Essences
insensées, Parcours Saint Germain, boutique Christian Lacroix,
Paris (2006). Group show (selection): Château de Tokyo / Palais
de Fontainebleau, Fontainebleau (2008) ; Hyères encore - Christian
Lacroix with David Dubois, Christian Rizzo, Daniel Firman, Galerie des
Galeries, Paris (2007) ; Dérive, Fondation d'entreprise Paul
Ricard, curator Mathieu Mercier, nominated for the Ricard Prize 2007,
Paris (2007) ; Mutadis, Mutandis, extract from Antoine de Galbert’s
collection, La Maison Rouge, Paris (2007).
Ori Gersht was born in Tel-Aviv (Israel) in 1967. He lives and works
in London (UK).
Solo show (selection): Black Box: Ori Gersht, Hirschhorn Museum &
Sculpture Garden, Washington DC (2008); Folding Time, Noga Gallery,
Tel Aviv (2008) ; Pomegranate, The Jewish Museum, New York; Time After
Time, Mummery + Schnelle, London (2007); The Forest, Tel Aviv Museum,
Tel Aviv (2006); The Clearing, Angles Gallery, Santa Monica, USA (2006).
Group show (selection): Personal Landscapes: Contemporary Art from Israel,
Katzen Arts Centre at American University, Washington DC (2008) ; @60.art.israel.world,
Judah L Magnes Museum, Berkley, California (2008); Pomegranate, Tate
Britain, London, “Single Shot” commissioned by Film &
Video Umbrella and The Film Council, UK (2007); Forest Primeval, MOCA
(GA), Atlanta, USATwillight: Photography in the Magic Hour, Victoria
& Albert Museum, London (2006).
Lori Hersberger
was born in Basel (Switzerland) in 1964. He lives and works in Zurich
(Switzerland) and Berlin (Germany).
Solo shows (selection): Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, Salzburg (2009); Lori
Hersberger - Phantom Studies, Musée d'Art Contemporain, Lyon
(2008); Phantom Studien, Galerie Mehdi Chouakri, Berlin (2008); Smooth
Transition, Galerie Lange & Pult, Zürich (2007); Beautiful
Occupation, House of Art, Budweis (2007); Zombie Voyager Nr 1, Galerie
Thaddaeus Ropac, Salzburg (2007); Insideout, Galerie Mehdi Chouakri,
Berlin (2006). Group show: Neon, Anna Schwartz Gallery, Sydney (2008);
Brave Lonesome Cowboy, Kunstmuseum St. Gallen (2007); Une question de
génération, Musée d’art Contemporain Lyon
(2007); Who Are You?, Galerie Lange & Pult, Zürich (2007);
Big City Lab, Art Forum Berlin (2006); Light Art from Artificial Light,
ZKM Museum für Neue Kunst Karlsruhe (2005); A Kind of Magic, Museum
of Art Lucerne (2005)
Installation View, The Hidden Land,
NETTIE HORN
Daniel FIRMAN
Something Strange Happened Here, 2009
Neon light
Gwenaël BELANGER
Le Faux Mouvement (1 to 120°), 2008
Giclée print, 274 x 100 cm
Edition 1/5
Gwenaël BELANGER
Le Tournis, 2008
Video HD, 6minutes in loop
Edition of 2/5
Lori HERSBERGER
Wide Open, 2005
Acrylic fluorescent paint on canvas
183 x 148 cm
Lori HERSBERGER
Catharsis Beach, 2006
Acrylic paint and enamel on canvas, 73 x 73 cm
Lori HERSBERGER
Untitled, 2009
Collage, mixed media
50 x 50 cm, framed
Ori GERSHT
Falling Bird series
Untitled No. 5, 2008
C-print mounted on aluminium, 42.5 x 32.5 cm
Edition 1/6
Ori GERSHT
Falling Bird series
Untitled n°4, 2008
C-print mounted on aluminium, 44 x 32.5 cm
Edition 1/6
Ori GERSHT
Falling Bird: Drown, 2008
C-print on aluminium, 100 x 80 cm
Edition 2/6
Ori GERSHT
Falling Bird series
Untitled No. 2, 2008
C-print mounted on aluminium
39 x 32.5 cm
Edition 2/6
Ori GERSHT
Falling Bird series
Untitled No. 8, 2008
C-print mounted on aluminium, 40 x 32.5 cm
Edition 1/6
© NETTIE HORN