Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue
Ana Bezelga (P), Andi Gáldi Vinkó (H), Farkas Júlia – Vékony Dorottya (H), Mare Tralla (EST/UK)
2016.10.29 – 11. 19.
A FERi, új feminista projekt galéria nyitókiállítása szimbolikusan egy esküvői tradícióból merített. „Valami régi, valami új, valami kölcsön, valami kék” azt a kötelező érvényű babonaegyüttest fogalmazza meg, amit a menyasszonynak követnie kell, hogy boldog, sikeres, hosszú házassága legyen. Valami régi a tradíciókhoz való hűséget jelenti és a kontinuításban való hitet, a valami új az opitimista jövőbe tekintést, valami kölcsönkapottat is viselnie kell, mely a megszerzett boldogságra utal, és a kék természetesen a tisztaságára.
A nyitókiállítás témája igyekszik előrevetíteni azt az attitűdőt, ahogy a galéria operálni szeretne, amilyen kiállításpolitikát követni fog. A feminizmus kritikai látásmód, a fordítás mindig interpretatív, kritikai és részleteges, mely alapul szolgál egy hatalmi jelenségek iránt érzékeny párbeszédre.
A kiállított alkotók, és kimondottan ezek a munkáik mind érzékenyen, finoman, iróniával, humorosan, konzekvensen nyúlnak a kultúrtörténet, sokszor kimondottan a művészettörténet által közvetített nőképhez, sztereotíp nőideálhoz, testtopikhoz. Az önreferencia, a parafrázis, a történetiség, vagy tradíció kritikai szemlélete közös bennük.
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The first, opening exhibition of FERi, a newborn feminist project gallery in Budapest refers to the well-known bridal tradition, that the bride should receive four different kind of things. This tradition comes from an old English rhyme („Something Olde, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue, A Sixpence in your Shoe”), and the four objects that the bride adds to her wedding outfit or carries with her on the “big day”: traditionally something old represents continuity; something new offers optimism for the future; something borrowed symbolizes borrowed happiness; something blue stands for purity, love, and fidelity.
Using this scheme, referring to the mainstream patriarchal concern “to be married” as a must-have, the exhibition deals with some issues and ideas with which it projects – in several ways – what the gallery has as exhibition politics.
All the four exhibitors use different artistic language to deal with the representation of women, all four has an intense, humorous, ironic, critical or subtle relationship with the history of visual culture, and art history itself.
Ana Bezelga’s video RE: Untitled (Facial Hair Transplants), 2006, refers to Ana Mendieta’s performance from 1972. She addresses hair as a power symbol. It can be a bridge between private and public spheres for representations of aesthetics of intimacy. She reflects on how the hair had been used in history and more specifically the context of women’s political struggles.
Mare Tralla’s video Crazy Love, 2011 on first level speaks about the stereotypical boring, sometimes trivial housekeeper-housewife life. But on the other hand the naked woman sitting uncomfortably on a child’s chair in front of the TV, Mare Tralla herself, watches beautiful women in love. However, the films chosen document the artist’s personal “coming out” journey as she is re-visits queering films, books and slowly dears to open a door to leave heterosexual reality she felt so uncomfortable with. The work comments on the situation of many others, who grew up in Soviet times and still continue to perform “normative life”, unable to “come out” as the post-soviet societies.
Andi Gáldi Vinkó with a sociographic interest gives a twisted portrait of her generation and parallel to that she gives again and again intimate portraits of her mother. The still-lifes and actual portraits – social landscapes – based on her artistic and fashion photographer background balance in between snapshot and staged photographical tradition.
Júlia Farkas and Dodi Vékony played with a century old tradition regarding female representation: the mermaid. The Amphibious Female, 2014 mocks on the passive, childish femme fatale stereotype using a shiny prop to become a half-fish woman. We can observe them in the sleeping-bag-like, purple body parts on beaches, hotel rooms – just like on family photos.