ELINA BROTHERUS – CARPE FUCKING DIEM
2015-12-07Starting with the series Landscapes and Escapes (1998-99), by studying the relationship between the individual and his surroundings, Brotherus addresses the human longing to occupy a territory: “Though I am not necessarily present in every image, it is important that I present myself through the world around me and the world through me.” (Elina Brotherus, Helsinki, May 1999.) Now fifteen years later, the exhibition Carpe Fucking Diem picks up again on the theme of the human form in nature, though this time the afterefect is ambivalent. To begin with the title seems contradictory: the epicurean phrase that encourages living in the moment with the knowledge that the future is in doubt and that nothing lasts appears to be challenged. Videos and photographs compose the exhibition like musical variations. Three of the videos are from the series Tango Trousers (2015), produced by the Serlachius Art Museum in Mänttä, Finland. Brotherus sought out the accordionist Maria Kalaniemi to create new compositions for the short works, shot in Mänttä. Music is often important in Brotherus’ universe and this accompaniment was essential. In the exhibition, the photographs appear to prolong the videos and vice versa. Our gaze flows from one medium to the other, from a snippet of movement to a motionless instant.
Opposite – Giraffe and Owl, 2013
Exhibition runs through to January 16th, 2016
gb agency
18, rue des 4 fils
75003 Paris
France
