As always, I could have told you about how I ended up there, but ultimately this is my story; as with any review, it will only ever be a subjective view of the exhibition, so at this point, I want to bring the reader right into “ How to disappear. “
What occurs when two performance artists join the exhibition stage with another artist that is also a stage designer? The first work appears on the exhibition display window, albeit not explicitly listed. It is a sizeable scratched glass surface made by Matěj Frank. The latter gives the space a cloudy effect; from the outside you have the impression of a winter ride in a bus, where the cold and condensed breath by humans (or a dog) fog up the window.
On the left side, we encounter the sujet of a sleeping cloak (1), presented in the room, on two different media – once as a straightforward print on the wall (unframed) and secondly as an object on a pedestal. Glassner, who we otherwise are used to encounter in live performances (2), this time lets the works speak for themselves. A distance from sleep?
Christina Helena Romirer shows a work titled „Temporary Shelters“ – a sun awning; its supporting structure is made of copper pipes, the paneling is covered with white found fabric, semi-transparent. For some time now, the artist has been working with temporary dwellings – parasols and tents, in addition to awnings. Knowing her skill in working with concrete, and glazed clay, one may imagine that these dwellings could one day be made out of them. Romirer is fond of testing out things that appear very light at first glance, in weightier building materials (see fortune cookies, oder ein zeitgenössisches Orakel, 2022), or combining very light materials with solemn ones in her sculptures (3).
The exhibition proceeds with a video of Matěj Frank’s, which from the screen typology (vertical and narrow), recalls The Falling Cat by Étienne-Jules Marey (1894). Only the duration of Matěj Frank’s work Visual DISTANCING (for Leo) will last long (…), until all disappears from the screen. Throughout the video (4), the viewer is accompanied by the murmur of tarnishing glass with steel wool.
Exhibition: How to disappear with Matěj Frank, Anne Glassner, Christina Helena Romirer
Exhibition duration: 06.10. – 18.10.2022 at Kunstraum SUPER, Schönbrunnerstraße 10, 1050 Wien
Notes:
(1) Artist Anne Glassner is widely known for her performance outfits. She has been noted for her racing overalls. Since 2020, she has also been producing a new series of oversized quilts. The latter were created in collaboration with Viennese designer lila.
(2) See https://anneglassner.at/works
(3) Such as concrete and tape or concrete and plastic. See https://christinahelena.net/02_22_portfolio_romirer.pdf
(4) See https://vimeo.com/756146426
* There is probably no such definition as Eastern European green. However, this kind of green strongly reminds me of the Eastern European countries I have visited and, at the same time of the colours of my childhood apartment (during communism in Albania).
Erka Shalari was born in Tirana in 1988 (AL). She studied Occupational Psychology at Tirana State University and Culture Management at MDW, Institute for Culture Management, Vienna. She focuses on discovering distinctive artistic positions, unconventional exhibition spaces and galleries that have deliberately broken new ground with their working methods. She relies on unorthodox publishing practices, coupling these with a nonchalant manner of writing – https://linktr.ee/erkashalari
