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201014: < rotor > Society for Contemporary Art : Territories
< rotor > Society for Contemporary Art : Territories
28.09.14 to 22.11.14
On the ceiling and beyond
By Nora Theiss
presents a multi-faceted, but at the same time compact exhibition within the framework of this year's Styrian Autumn. With "Territories", seven positions of artists are shown that deal with occupation, holding occupied, elimination and making use of rooms, landscapes and resources. As different as the displayed works are, they enrich each other at different levels.
Already the entrance area to the gallery which is partially occupied by the work "53,31 m² barrier planks" by Ovidiu Anton, shatters the accustomed perception because the tribune built up here forms an extensive barrier which can, admittedly, be overcome but appears as extremely massive and forbidding. The courageous dare to get over it, for the losers, there is still an entrance through the stairwell. Meanwhile, climbing over the barrier doesn't just present a new standpoint, and therefore a new perspective, but also presents a unique opportunity to reach up to the ceiling of the metres-high old building.
Behind this, further works open up, the aspects of territorial inclusion and exclusion, not only in the room but also to capture the language – Lerato Shadi's "Selogilwe", an elegiac, seven-hour video; the presumptuousness of the conquest in the literal sense of the word – Tim Sharp's "Chain Reaction", which conjures up associations of a crown of thorns –; transgressing the borders both public and private – Gaby Steiner's "Public Home" –; or the area of conflict of melancholic, sentimental pictorial language as opposed to brutal, territorial conflict – Gamlet Zinkovsky's cycle "Awaiting the War". The brutality of the territorial invasion brings Mark Boulos up to the commercial, capitalistic level by means of a video installation. His documentation from the Niger delta illustrates how the large oil firms enrich themselves through the mineral wealth of the African continent, thereby robbing the people living there of every basis of existence. The forcefulness of the juxtaposition of the pictures of ecstatic men in the Nigerian jungle on the one side and of the great crude oil selling exchange in Chicago on the other side gives ones goose bumps and promotes reflection.
The dealings of humans with humans, with the earth which, according to Rousseau doesn't belong to any one person, and its resources is clearly articulated, thematised and represented in wonderful artistic works in this exhibition. One is tempted to reach for the ceiling and in so doing, to wish for changes.
< rotor > Society for Contemporary Art
8020 Graz, Volksgartenstraße 6a,
Tel: +43 316 688 306
Fax: +43 316 688306
Email: rotor@mur.at
http://rotor.mur.at
Opening hours: Mon – Fri 10.00 – 18.00 hours, Sat 12:00 – 16:00 hours
Mehr Texte von translated and summarized by: Liz Wollner-Grandville
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201014
< rotor > Verein für zeitgenössische Kunst
8020 Graz, Volksgartenstraße 6a
Tel: 0043 / 316 / 688306, Fax: 0043 / 316 / 688306
Email: rotor@mur.at
http://rotor.mur.at
Öffnungszeiten: Mo-Fr 10-18 Uhr, Sa 12-16 Uhr
< rotor > Verein für zeitgenössische Kunst
8020 Graz, Volksgartenstraße 6a
Tel: 0043 / 316 / 688306, Fax: 0043 / 316 / 688306
Email: rotor@mur.at
http://rotor.mur.at
Öffnungszeiten: Mo-Fr 10-18 Uhr, Sa 12-16 Uhr
