ART
Maria Loboda |
Written 30 January |
Tuesday 19 May, 14:00Galerie Schleicher + Lange, 75003 [map]Maria Loboda
Polish born Maria Loboda has, in her past work, called upon a jinn, the presence of which was manifested by a signed document certifying the act of invocation. By drawing upon a mediaeval curse, or an I Ching, or the Victorian language of flowers (via which she conveys evil messages), the artist interweaves different codes (under the aegis of a cultural heritage such as Romantic music, as in the case of 'Conversational Style'). Music thus plays a central role, albeit a silent one, in this exhibition. The title of the exhibition refers to Joseph Haydn's definition of chamber music as a 'conversational style of composition', which provided the artist with her starting point for the exhibition.
Thirteen letters have been arranged about the space, in the form of wall drawings or three-dimensional shapes. They are not easily identifiable, posing as interior shapes, abstract and convivial, they will only come to compose a word as the spectator progresses through the installation.
Referencing artists or creators from a more or less recent past is a common practice for the artist and is the case in 'New Sculptures for an Old Collection' (2008) - a reference to the designer
Eileen Grey - and in 'Kugel, Fläche, Stab, Kristall, Band, Kegel, Spirale' (2008) (Sphere, Surface, Rod, Crystal, Ribbon, Cone, Spiral), which alludes to
Laszlo Moholy-Nagy. In 'Conversational Style' she continues in the same vein. In the last room, an armchair in the style of 1920s Czech Cubism with an adjacent cushion evokes two people in conversation. The originality of this bicephalous sculpture lies in the artist's self-imposed constraints: to build the piece from the same materials used to produce a musical instrument. By opting for a visionary trend in design, combining pure formalisation with everyday objects, the artist creates a hybrid territory, both futuristic project and historic reinterpretation. How can an instrument become furniture? How can pure forms be tied to a function? And in this crossover, what is lost or gained?
The intangibility of the meaning behind Maria Loboda's works contrasts with the strong presence of shapes and materials echoing the complexity of an ambivalent world, where forces can be continually overturned, revived or simply ignored.
