Collection of Curiosities 2012: A wondrous play on nature. I Art Exhibition

The artworks shown in this exhibition express a fascination with nature in a headstrong way.

Nature is used as a metaphor for the inner world of human beings or life as observed by the artists. The exhibition presents a collection of intriguing thoughts translated into rare contemporary art objects from various genres. A wonder chamber for 2012.

For my portfolio I selected some works shown in the exhibition.

Artists: Maria Volokhova I Haruka Matsuo I Anna Volkova I Caroline de Bruijn I Zward I Celine van den Boorn I Hilde de Decker I Jacomijn van der Donk I Eke Kriek I Marijke Schurink I Linsey van den Abeele I Mu Xue I Curator : Kim van Beek I Invitation : alt8.com

Caroline de Bruijn

Born in Soest, NL , 1978
2003-2006  Gerrit Rietveld Academy, ceramics, Amsterdam
1998-2002  Art Academy, teacher training, Amsterdam
1997-1998  University of Amsterdam, Psychology, Amsterdam

The works of Caroline de Bruijn portray thoughts and feelings that influence inevitably our life experience and vision of life; they represent death, beauty, impotence. In her work, sculptures made of rope,  animals symbolise or strengthen human feelings. For centuries fables derive their right to exist from animals with human characteristics. Often supernatural powers to face life. It is rather impotence which is often interpreted in Caroline’s work. It is her fascination for human psyche, translated into sculptures with a symbolic language that give shape to her work.

Website: http://carolinedebruijn.eu

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De sculpturen van Caroline de Bruijn brengen gedachten en gevoelens ten tonele die onontkoombaar bepalen hoe wij ons leven ervaren en onze levensvisie beïnvloeden; ze interpreteren gevoelens over de dood, schoonheid, onmacht. In haar werk, beelden van touw, zijn het dieren die als metafoor dienen om bepaalde gevoelens te symboliseren of te versterken.

Al eeuwenlang ontlenen fabels hun bestaansrecht aan het toekennen van menselijke eigenschappen aan dieren. Veelal bovennatuurlijke macht om het leven te trotseren. Juist onmacht speelt bij het werk van Caroline een grote rol. Haar fascinatie voor de menselijke psyche, vertaald naar sculpturen met symbolische vormgeving geven gestalte aan haar werk.

A table installation with porcelain vessels. Food bowls in a shape of playing baby’s, or embryo’s are filled with delicious food inviting for a dinner.

Maria Volokhova I Berlin I Germany

Born 1980 I Kiev I Ukraine

2006- 09    Tokyo Art University Tokyo, Japan, Faculty of Ceramics
2005- 07    Postgraduate study, Fine Arts, „Burg Giebichenstein“
2003           Ohio University, Department of Printmaking, Athens, USA
2000- 01    Accademia di belle Arte, Printmaking, Bologna, Italy
1997- 04    Burg Giebichenstein Fine Arts, Painting / Grafics

Website : http://www.volokhova.com/art

Celine van den Boorn
Born in Heerlen, NL, 1978

1997-2002  Hogeschool van de Kunsten, Utrecht
2002-2006  Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Cultural Antropology,   Individual study program about the relationship between nature and culture.

Celine van den Boorn examines the relationship between man and nature. In her recent work van den Boorn creates new versions of photographed landscapes by painting away the people, mostly tourists or soldiers- that were originally present. As a result the focus in the image shifts from human to landscape. The landscape separates itself from his function as a holiday or war area and a tension occurs between the seemingly untouched nature and the still visible traces of human presence.

Website : https://www.celinevandenboorn.com/

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Het werk van Celine van den Boorn gaat over de verhouding tussen natuur en cultuur, over de mens en de manier waarop hij omgaat met zijn natuurlijke omgeving. In haar recente werk creëert Van den Boorn nieuwe versies van gefotografeerde landschappen, door de hierin voorkomende mensen, vaak in de rol van toerist, recreant of soldaat, weg te schilderen. Hierdoor verschuift in het beeld de focus van de mens naar het landschap. Het landschap komt los van zijn hoedanigheid als vakantie- of oorlogsgebied en er ontstaat spanning tussen de schijnbaar ongerepte natuur en de nog zichtbare sporen van menselijke aanwezigheid.

Dolci Lacrime – series of works

 “Dolci Lacrime”, or “Sweet Tears” refers to a German music piece from the 17^th century “Süsse Tränen”. The character of this piece was about the boundaries of human feelings. Both sad and cheerful it left the audience behind with mixed emotions.

The series of works made for the Dolci Lacrime project are abstract objects inspired on the observations of shapes of the human body transformed into a new form with a new “function.” Volokhova uses the works as metaphors- the objects become “three dimensional poems.” The sculpture on the photograph is based on a piece of lung a thousand times enlarged.

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In “A Wild Sheep Chase”, a novel of the Japanese writer Haruki Murukami, a story is told about a Mongolian legend in which a sheep gives its soul to a man lost in wilderness, hidden in a cave. The man becomes wealthy and successful but as soon as the sheep decides to give his soul to another person, the one before looses everything. Volokhova has another interpretation of the book; influenced by memories of the time she spend living in Tokyo, she thinks Murukami is, in a way, comparing the society with a group of sheep.

Shortly after reading the novel Volokhova was in Turkey to buy food in a supermarket, where she saw the head of a sheep staring at her. She bought it to create a mall for this work a “Sheep Chase”.

http://www.volokhova.com/art/projects

Haruka draws directly from her imagination. This drawing reveals memories both from her life in Japan and inspiration from Japanese tree drawing books. She usually works with ink. This is her first big tree drawing made with pencil; still you can feel the experience of ink while watching it from a distance.

Haruka Matsuo 
Born in Tokyo, Japan.

2004 BA Textile Department Gerrit Rietveld Academie Amsterdam
2000 MA in sculpture fine Art, Kyoto City University of Art, Japan
1998 BA in sculpture fine Art, Kyoto City University of Art, Japan

http://haruka.nl/