—MISTAKES—
From the ongoing series [Bridges]
Part of the bundle 6 Private Mini-Exhibitions
For six months in 2017, I held a mini-exhibition at my house. Every month I created new works based on my Bridge-Performances. These new works were then exhibited at Gallery 1 Flat Wall in Berlin for 21 days, from the 1st – 21st).
In May I exhibited Mistakes. This is one artwork consisting of 39 photographs of Bridge-Performances, placed on 3 mapped wooden, with 87 seal bags hanging from them containing balls of human hair.
Around the world, I am doing Bridge-Performances. These performances are the makings of photographs of me by tourists on bridges. In post-production, I experiment with these photographs to emphasize certain ideas. Such as the bridge as a metaphor, tourism vs. immigration, power structures, communication, authorship, and personal development.
The photographs in the work Mistakes are a collection of Bridge-Performance photographs, where you can see me posing with closed eyes. The mistake-photographs: where the “photographer” pushed the button at the wrong moment—which is when I have my eyes closed.
The photographs are placed on 3 horizontally arranged wooden laths, which have fragments of the current European map on them. Could these laths represent a timeline or a yardstick? Except for Cuba, all photographs are made during Bridge-Performances in Europe.
On the bottom of the wooden laths are hanging transparent little transparent bags with hair knots in them. Hair from the artist, my hair, collected over time. The tangled hairballs look to me like insects, each with their singular character. They are contained in grip bags to observe thoroughly.
I am critical of tourism, and the process of travel and individual colonizing by for example “taking” pictures.
Through my eyes, I can perceive the world. If I can see what is happening, then I can choose what to do and perhaps even direct from where I am standing. Is that so? To where do I want to travel and what for?
On the other hand, I am free so I can travel and that’s why I think I should travel. Unlike for example the citizens in the former GDR, who were not allowed to travel, or the opposite current refugees who are forced to move because of for example war.
Eyes closed, I don’t want to see it (it is inhumane). I can’t see it (I haven’t learned anything about it). I am not able to see it (it is too entrenched and complicated). I can’t handle seeing it (I just don’t want this brutality to be real). I don’t want to see it (it is too much besides my own problems). Seeing it makes me feel responsible (if I don’t do anything, by ignoring it, I am sort of agreeing with it).
Eyes closed, I don’t want to see it (since it has already happened, it is history). I close my eyes (I don’t want to witness it). I don’t want to see it (then maybe I can pretend it is not happening).
Eyes closed, I don’t want to see it (because I feel incapable of doing something about it). I don’t want to face it. And therefore I can correct history or maybe even replace it? Or can it even be that I am doing something actively? By closing my eyes I am also not contributing. Whatever I do (or not do) I am failing. History is happening while I am failing to look at it.
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This original artwork is created in one edition only (as pìece unique). It comes with a signed certificate of authenticity.
Regular price (no discount) € 2.718,00€ inc. Vat*
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