INVENTORY FOR A SAFE AND FUN TRIP TO BE LOST
SCULPTURE SERIE/2021
ⒸVirginie Otth
The labyrinthine nature of the burrow, and its function, generates a whole system of questions, doubts and daydreams. As Franz Kafka’s famous story illustrates, it is immediately associated with the idea of refuge – which makes us feel safe – and thus leads to questions of borders and limits (in particular between inside and outside). The phantasmagorical potential of the burrow is the starting point for this exhibition, which invites us to think about boundary zones or physical and symbolic barriers. Samuel Georgy and Johanna Kotlaris deal with the notion of distance, in an ironic, joyful, sometimes anxious or confrontational way. The artists invite us to take a step back (or sideways), to think about this concept, which at first sight is simple and yet so rich and complex in the intellectual developments it allows. Based on the premise that distance always contains a form of space to be filled – free of projections and filled with subjective experiences – it is this investigation that is presented and staged in the exhibition space.
To this aim, Samuel Georgy and Johanna Kotlaris deal with the notion of distance, in an ironic, joyful, sometimes anxious or confrontational way. The artists invite us to take a step back (or sideways), to think about this concept, which at first sight is simple and yet so rich and complex in the intellectual developments it allows. What is the distance between where we come from and where we are going? How can this in-between be defined and what are its implications? How is it perceived and how can
it be experienced? Based on the premise that distance always contains a form of space to be filled – free of projections and filled with subjective experiences – it is this investigation that is presente and staged in the exhibition space. In his series “Inventory for a safe and fun trip to be lost”, Samuel Georgy proposes an ironic understanding of the subject, which sometimes tends towards the absurd. Exploring in his wor the relationship between intimate and political narratives, he deals here with notions of security and insecurity relating to masculinities, mixed with European geopolitical issues. Through symbolic evocation and metaphor, his static objects, that play with the architecture, unfold a speculativ dimension that suggests movements, falls, failures and even dysfunctions. His funny and playful approach opens up a critical distance and contrasts with the seriousness of the questions and issues raised.
Text by Julie Lang
To this aim, Samuel Georgy and Johanna Kotlaris deal with the notion of distance, in an ironic, joyful, sometimes anxious or confrontational way. The artists invite us to take a step back (or sideways), to think about this concept, which at first sight is simple and yet so rich and complex in the intellectual developments it allows. What is the distance between where we come from and where we are going? How can this in-between be defined and what are its implications? How is it perceived and how can
it be experienced? Based on the premise that distance always contains a form of space to be filled – free of projections and filled with subjective experiences – it is this investigation that is presente and staged in the exhibition space. In his series “Inventory for a safe and fun trip to be lost”, Samuel Georgy proposes an ironic understanding of the subject, which sometimes tends towards the absurd. Exploring in his wor the relationship between intimate and political narratives, he deals here with notions of security and insecurity relating to masculinities, mixed with European geopolitical issues. Through symbolic evocation and metaphor, his static objects, that play with the architecture, unfold a speculativ dimension that suggests movements, falls, failures and even dysfunctions. His funny and playful approach opens up a critical distance and contrasts with the seriousness of the questions and issues raised.
Text by Julie Lang