In recent work, she explores these themes through an investigation of historical sumptuary laws. These serve to “regulat[e] the consumption of materials for citizens’ daily fashions usually on religious or moral grounds and naturally corresponding to strict class lines,” as she describes in her essay “Waist of Money.”
Exhibition view, Anna-Sophie Berger. Sin at JTT Gallery 
Anna-Sophie Berger Occam’s Razor, 2022 aluminum ladders, zip ties 21.50h x 21w x 121d in 54.61h x 53.34w x 307.34d cm Bas-2022-339
Berger often embeds her objects and installations with a complex symbolic language. By taking recourse to stage organization in theater her sculptures can appear as actors as well as props. In several new works this manifests through the appropriation of components from works of art from the early modern period, such as the Unicorn Tapestries or the allegory of Wealth from the medieval epic poem “Romance of the Rose.”
Anna-Sophie Berger Lady Wealth, 2022 velvet, cotton, thread, polyurethane, lacquer, paint, laminated paper, zip tie, frogs (Hester & Eldridge) 72h x 92w x 94d in 182.88h x 233.68w x 238.76d cm Bas-2022-334 
Anna-Sophie Berger Lady Wealth, 2022 velvet, cotton, thread, polyurethane, lacquer, paint, laminated paper, zip tie, frogs (Hester & Eldridge) 72h x 92w x 94d in 182.88h x 233.68w x 238.76d cm Bas-2022-334 
Anna-Sophie Berger The Virgin and the Unicorn, 2022 velvet, cotton, thread, mud, polyurethane, paint 72h x 32w x 33d in 182.88h x 81.28w x 83.82d cm Bas-2022-333 
Anna-Sophie Berger The Virgin and the Unicorn, 2022 velvet, cotton, thread, mud, polyurethane, paint 72h x 32w x 33d in 182.88h x 81.28w x 83.82d cm Bas-2022-333 
Anna-Sophie Berger The Beast On Whose Account I Turnt, 2022 paper, inkjet, sticky tape 43.75h x 65w in 111.13h x 165.10w cm Bas-2022-330 
Anna-Sophie Berger Fountain, 2022 plywood, screws, polar fleece, tin and lead alloy with aluminum coating, thread 31.50h x 15w x 17.50d in 80.01h x 38.10w x 44.45d cm Bas-2022-336
Christian scholastic themes are scrutinized for their bearing on contemporary notions of morals. Other sculptures isolate elements of incidental design from shared municipal spaces including playgrounds, parks, and construction sites. Thus, Berger links the ever-contingent meaning of objects to both their popular and historical understanding.
Exhibition: Anna-Sophie Berger – Sin
Exhibition duration: May 13 – June 18, 2022
Address and contact:
JTT Gallery
390 Broadway, New York 10013 212-574-8152
www.jttnyc.com
Anna-Sophie Berger – www.anna-sophie-berger.com
