8th May � 20th June 2009 Cris Brodahl -The approach W1
30th April - 14th June 2009 Spoils & Relics -The approach E2
______________________________
30th April - 14th June 2009 The approach E2
Spoils & Relics Henning Bohl, Michael Hakimi, Amanda Ross-Ho
All three artists in Spoils & Relics are involved in a constant process of de-constructing and re-constructing imagery. Motifs from earlier works often appear recycled, as everything, including the artists' own practice is potential source material. The rejected or negative space generated from one work can become the found material for the next. Through a choreographed investigation of display there is a questioning of methods of producing and exhibiting artworks and a semiotic exploration of the relationships and hierarchies between fragment and whole, individual and totality.
Henning Bohl's composition is formed by the application of commercially produced coloured paper on to primed canvas. The 'painting' reveals its own sculptural materiality by the way Bohl applies the paper to the canvas, in parts curling and folding away from the picture plane. Bohl also uses the negative residues of cut out paper forms and in doing so develops an economics of image production, activating logic of its own process. The fragmented imagery that this composition draws from originally referenced images of Japanese Kabuki masks. Bohl uses the elements of a portrait to create a non-portrait format. Works have become increasingly abstract from one to the next, in a self-referential history. The canvas becomes a stage where the abstract elements echo back these figurative signs of theatrically staged psychology - a line of a smile, the circle of an eye are revealed as dominating constructions of vision and perception.
Amanda Ross-Ho's cut canvas works transform imagery through sculptural negotiations. These cut outs are made from canvas drop cloth coated in black latex. The images are translated from photographs of vintage macram�. The result is an interlocking system or totality that contains potential for mathematical geometric structures as well as more organic or free forms. The process finds parallels in other modes that employ direct manipulation of linear elements into legible forms such as drawing and writing. Considered formally, these works compound flatness, reversing the white and black macram� image to black and white as if in a photographic negative. They depict gravity and also speak about the paintings' gravity in relation to the wall. The installation cross pollutes sites of production and sites of presentation by integrating elements that anchor the work to these realms or introduce transparency between the context in which the work was made versus that in which it is presented.
Michael Hakimi's work explores the threshold of representation. The narrative potential of basic geometric forms is investigated, rotating and manipulating segments that materialize into new matter. Some works lean on the wall, some attach to it, others are freestanding, playing out different possibilities of basic display. Scale is manipulated and fragments of images as well as residual and edited images become the subjects. A cut out MDF shape stands with a two-dimensional front but its reverse reveals a theatrical support reminiscent of an advertising prop. The section of the letter 'A' painted on its surface creates a phantom reference to a larger whole that is missing or in fact never even existed. The graphic representation of the edge of the letter appears stronger than the white edge of the physical sculpture itself. As with many works in the show the simplicity of shape, line and form create a flattening effect but despite the destruction and removal of information the image remains symbolically loaded.
For further information please contact Emma Robertson at The Approach
Henning Bohl lives and works in Berlin. Recent solo shows: Psyc Holo G yHe Ute, Casey Kaplan, New York (2009), The ate r Today, Johan Konig, Berlin (2008), Oldenburger Kunstverein, Oldenburg (2008), Non-solo, Non-group show, with El Arakawa and Nora Schultz, Galeria Franco Soffiantino, Turin (2008). Recent group shows: Ank�ufe der Freunde der Nationalgalerie, Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin (2009), Madonna und wir, Galerie Christian Nagel, Berlin (2008), Egypted, curated by Will Benedict, Kunsthalle Exnergasse, Vienna (2008), Forthcoming: Staatliche Kunsthalle Baden-Baden, Baden-Baden Germany and Pro-choice, Vienna, Austria (with Sabine Reitmaier).
Amanda Ross-Ho lives and works in Los Angeles. Recent solo shows: Mitchell-Innes & Nash (forthcoming), HALF OF WHAT I SAY IS MEANINGLESS, Cherry and Martin, Los Angeles (2008), Hoet Bekaert, Knokke, Belgium (2007), NOTHING FUCKING MATTERS, Cherry and Martin, Los Angeles (2007). Recent group shows: Mitchell-Innes & Nash (2008), Dogtooth & Tessellate, The Approach, London (2008), 2008 California Biennial, Orange County Museum of Art, Newport Beach (2008), Index: Conceptualism in California From The Permanent Collection, MOCA, Los Angeles (2008), Whitney Biennial, Whitney Museum of American Art (2008).
Michael Hakimi lives and works in Berlin. Recent Solo shows include: Neocoins, Mary Mary Gallery, Glasgow (2009), Temporaere, Kunsthalle Berlin, Project-space (2009), The Adventures of a Mystic Cat, Art Statements, Art Basel 39, (2008), Resonance, Public-art-project, Krome-Gallery, Berlin (2008), ROOF, Kunsthalle Basel (2007), Andrew Kreps Gallery, New York, mit / with Ellen Gronemeyer (2007), Recent Group shows: Dark Side of the Moon, Galerie Martin Janda, Wien (2009), THR-FRA-THR, Mahe-Mehr Gallery, Teheran / Tehran (2009), Im Lichte milder Verklaerung, Galerie Kienzle & Gmeiner, Berlin, kuratiert von / curated by Claudia Kugler (2008), Horsbit Cocktail, Galerie Dennis Kimmerich, D�sseldorf, kuratiert von / curated by Christabel Stewart (2008), THR-FRA-THR, Mousonturm, Frankfurt am Main (2008).
8th May � 20th June 2009 The approach W1 Cris Brodahl
Cris Brodahl�s monochromatic oil paintings are configurations of fractured beauty that carry undertones of violence, sexuality, the subconscious and the uncanny.
Brodahl uses techniques reminiscent of Surrealism such as free association and simulation of collage through oil paint to create sombre and emotionally charged compositions suggesting strong psychological undercurrents. Brodahl sources imagery from fashion magazines and old interiors publications. For this exhibition, she also uses the self-portrait as a vehicle for her explorations. These seductive and monstrous depictions of distorted and re-represented femininity are tightly controlled by Brodahl�s mastery of paint. Disembodied parts and the displacement of recognizable figures stilt the sensuousness of the realistically painted flesh. The timelessness of the works is accentuated by Brodahl�s palette, which evokes a sense of nostalgia in its sepia and grey tones.
The exhibition at The Approach W1 is typical of the artist�s attention to fine detail and installation concerns. Brodahl uses screens, mirrors and metal supports to act as subtle devices to control the environment and viewing experience. For the first time the artist will be showing sculptures as part of the considered installation. As with the paintings, the sculptures are a curious amalgamation of found elements. Along with cut materials such as mirrors and wood there are objects cast in bronze mixed with figurines bought from local charity shops in her hometown of Gent in Belgium.
Cris Brodahl was born in 1963, and lives and works in Gent. This is her second solo show at The Approach. Recent solo exhibitions include: Xavier Hufkens, Brussels (2008); The Yellow Tree, Marc Foxx, Los Angeles (2007); Thin Whites, The Approach, London (2006); Electric Blue, Xavier Hufkens, Brussels (2006); Marc Foxx, Los Angeles (2004). Selected group shows include: Sphinxx, Modern Art, London (2008); An Archeology, 176, London (2007); Cut, The Approach, London (2005); Michael Bauer, Cris Brodahl, Stef Driesen, Marc Foxx, Los Angeles (2004)
For further information please contact Vanessa Carlos at The Approach ([email protected])
The approach W1 74 Mortimer Street Fitzrovia London W1W 7RZ
Gallery open: Tuesday�Saturday: 11am�6pm or by appointment
The approach E2 47 Approach Road Bethnal Green London E2 9LY
Gallery open: Wednesday�Sunday: 12�6pm or by appointment
