Not only our gallery’s, but also CARMEN CALVO’s history as an artist started 35 years ago. Like in many other european countries youth also in Spain, where society under the fascist regime of Franco had – unlike more terribly than us – to suffer, went on the barricades to make it better.
The epicentre of these Utopias was Valencia, where a rebellious and young generation of artists prepared for following in the footsteps of Tapies, Arroyo and the all defining group „Equipo Cronica“, to put up a new, THEIR political und artistic dogma: Art as a social and aesthetic dedication. And until today CARMEN CALVO is still young and inconvenient, not a bit silent and not ready to compromise: A wilful seeker of truth, who won’t let herself being conquered, not even by the Venice Biennale, where for the first time a woman - „the CALVO“ – represented Spain in 1997, and not even by all her exhibitions in the big museums all over the world. CARMEN CALVO doesn’t need big issues, as long as every day brings up so many new small and private tragedies, catastrophes and disasters, that grow up – for the individual - to inescapable dimensions, called: Abused childhood, violence against women, love, sexuality, hate, criminality, pain, supression, blood and death.
LA LUZ Y LA SOMBRA
„Light and shadow“ is the title of her first exhibition in Vienna’s gallery of Mario Mauroner, who is connected with CARMEN CALVO through a long international collaboration. The exhibition starts with large-sized works of glass, that are telling us about light, which is blinding us to flee into the darkness. There we meet masked personalities and their secret attitudes, that bring „soaking“ light like a stage machinery into daylight. The mask becomes a harbour for humans. In a next room – dark like night – we meet some single, on a valuable ground of gold presented objects, which are every day fetishs, that manifest a life readable through these objects. A congeniality also connects her with the british filmer and theatre maker Nicolas Hytner and his sentence „light gives birth to darkness“.
CARMEN CALVO is a cunning director, who understands not to challenge us with memories, but with every days obsessions, and who forces us to act emotionally. The main part of her work are the bitter stories life brings, paired with theatrical moments, where reality easily overtops fiction. Exactly this is the hour of CARMEN CALVO and the eternaly subversive force of art.
CARMEN CALVO will be in Vienna for the opening of her exhibition „LA LUZ Y LA SOMBRA“ on Thursday, September 18th from 6-9 pm.
Duration of the exhibition: September 18th – November 8th 2008
At the same time we are opening in the gallery’s RoomnumberOne the exhibition:
TATIANA ANTOSHINA: "My Favorite Artists"
Coming from Sibiria and living in Moscow, the artist handles in this new and in Vienna for the first time shown cycle, in an ironically and lovely way the strangeness and curiosity of her highly estimated artist collegues. The charming, but with a twinkle in her eye presented „attack“ of the Russian, shows a new facet of herself as an artist, whose early paintings and photographs recently caused some furore in London auctions.
TATIANA ANTOSHINA will be in Vienna for the opening of her exhibition „MY FAVORITE ARTISTS“ on Thursday, September 18th from 6-9 pm.
MAM Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art VIENNA Weihburggasse 26 A 1010 WIEN
Telefon: +43-1-904 2004
18.09.-8.11.2008: Carmen CALVO: "Light and Shade" 11.11.-10.01.2009: Madeleine BERKHEMER: "Traditional Show" 21.11.-10.01.2009: Claudia ROGGE Project im Monat der Fotographie
MAM Mario Mauroner Contemporary Art SALZBURG Residenzplatz 1 A 5020 Salzburg
Telefon: +43-662-845 185
20.09.-24.10.2008: BERTRAM HASENAUER: "Glade in the shadow of a hill" 25.10.-03.12.2008: PAOLO GRASSINO 06.12.-31.01.2009: SON:DA
