EIGHT EXTREME OBJETS D'ART (Art objects):
multimedia pieces (oil on canvas, photo,
internet, chain, rope, thread, staples, plastic, feathers, cloth etc.) which
are about vulnerability ... also reflected in the fragility and temporality
of each piece.
1) Stopp folkemordet (stop the genocide).
2) Asteroid storm.
3) Danger of nuclear holocaust.
4) Devaluation of greed.
5) Caught up in the moment.
6) Gay stigma.
7) Oil: black gold - resource and cause of destruction.
8) Congo, cell phones and coltan.
All of these pieces are small in size (30 x 30 cm, 24 x 34 cm and 20 x 20 cm).
Gay stigma is an objet d'art based on gay stigma - very exciting -
using an old photo of gay prisoners from nazi germany, the pink triangle (which has
been revived by today's gay activists as a symbol of pride), and on the
inside a crudely painted and tainted gold and pink era of new gay progress with a
hangman's rope - signifying that gays are still suffering from oppression and stigmatization,
which often leads to suicide or execution. The photo (re-done in pink overtones)
and the pink triangle function as an envelope covering the painting installation
underneath. (Tainted dreams no. 2)
Stopp folkemordet (stop the genocide) is made with material which
evokes memories of the Nazi prisoner uniforms, but the newness of the
materials used reminds us that genocide continues even today - all over the world.
Danger of nuclear holocaust shows the white flash at the moment of
nuclear explosion, depicted by white on white squares, while lightly sewn on
the face of the painting is a warning in Morse code: Nuclear holocaust,
and wrapped gaily around the painting is red and white plastic used to
rope off areas of danger. The usage of thread in many of these pieces
alludes to the ease with which we humans can tear away those
warnings that we do not wish to see or deal with.
Devaluation of greed shows tainted prosperity in lime green with gold
leaf fading and disintegrating, over the painting is a cut down image of a dollar
bill - lightly hanging over the top of the painting. (Tainted dreams no. 1)
Oil: black gold is a commentary on our primary energy resource,
which has both served us well and which is also the cause of current political,
economic and environmental disorder and strife. This painting shows
gold leaf on a black background (elegantly expressed), but hanging
from the side of the painting is a photo postcard of an unknown
tourist in Norway sitting outside an old-fashioned gas station, now
only found at a museum in Oslo (the Folk Museum).
On the back side of the postcard is written a greeting from Oslo, Norway,
where the oil and gas flow freely and where there is no sign of
global warming.
Caught up in the moment depicts two women caught up in their thoughts. This
work includes photo, gold leaf and feathers on a black background, all covered
with black netting, and with a piece of a dream catcher hanging over the front of the
art work. This piece represents the individual and collective need to get away ...
inside ourselves - free to wander in our thoughts and reflections. This is,
unfortunately, a personal freedom that not all have the everyday luxury of
enjoying in our world today. This is also represented by the black material covering the images of these women - both protecting them from the outside world and silencing them from participating in it.
Asteroid storm features gold leaf on a rough and starry midnight blue background,
depicting the danger and beauty of an asteroid storm, which could change the
Earth and the course and survival of humanity forever. Alongside this small painting
is the asteroid impact Torino Scale and a roulette wheel, tucked away inside a plastic envelope
which is tacked to the wall - a reminder that everything is a game of chance, and the feared
asteroid collision with the Earth in 2014 is nothing most bother to think of or worry about.
We have many other worries that seem more tailor-made for these difficult economic times.
In fact, so many that we quickly forget about injustice, genocide and natural disasters until they rest
squarely upon the shoulders of the individual in question.
Congo, cell phones and coltan is a beautiful piece depicting the national colors
of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, African animal patterns, gold leaf and
gold paint that illustrate the wealth of the coltan market, and with a bloody cell phone
in a plastic bag hanging from brass wire wrapped around the painting. The work illustrates
the role of the export of coltan for usage in cell phones and computers worldwide in
perpetuating violence and death in the Congo, and the responsibility of consumers.
All of these art objects illustrate the dangers of self-involvement, greed and unknown
disasters which can either bring us together or split us apart as a human race -- the
choice and the challenge are always ours.
For more images of these extreme objets d'art, click on this link.
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