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16th May - 15th June
Sophie von Hellermann
Accidental Portraits
Vilma Gold are pleased to present a new exhibition of work by Sophie
von Hellermann.
A nude stands in a 50’s interior whilst a stormy sky whirls
outside. Beneath her a parquet floor has seemingly been transformed
into a sea of fish bones. In the foreground stands a portrait of
a woman in profile with a group of three roses laid out above. In
a scene reminiscent of a De Chirico dreamscape, von Hellermann constructs
a surreal landscape of uncertain borders. Painting in pigment and
acrylic emulsion, von Hellemann once described her work ‘as
if the canvas were carried past the actual events.’ Yet, conversely,
it often appears as if the works possess the weight of premonition,
foretelling narratives laced with uncertainties. Von Hellermann’s
paintings draw upon current affairs as often as they borrow from
the imagery of classical mythology and literature. In ‘Obama’
a mass of people watch as a newly elected president and his wife
drive through the crowds in a black open top car. The evening light
and flash of the car’s headlights give rise to both a heady
sense of celebration and a lurking sense of danger. In ‘Evening
Song’ a mystical figure stares into a blazing sun, whilst
shadows dance behind. In the midst of this a plane is visible darting
across the evening sky.
"To the person in the bell jar, blank and stopped as a dead
baby, the world itself is the bad dream." In Sylvia’s
Plath’s ‘The Bell Jar’, Esther’s internal
retort to her mother’s assertions that her madness was ‘just
a bad dream’, transposes the concept of ‘reality’
into another way of looking. Von Hellerman’s painterly imaginary
is laden with ambiguity and uncertainty, yet here also the gift
of perception can be seen in play.
Sophie von Hellermann is currently participating in ‘The Alliance’,
at Do-Art gallery, Beijing and Seoul curated by Seungduk Kim and
Franck Gautherot. She will be participating in a forthcoming group
show at Base-Progetti per l’Arte, Florence, curated by Franz
West, and ‘Painting Now and Forever Part II’ at Greene
Naftali and Matthew Marks Gallery later this year.
Preview:
Thursday 15 May 6 - 8.30pm
6 Minerva Street
London
E2 9EH
Open Wednesday-Sunday, 11am-6pm
For further information or images please contact
Kate Fisher: +44 (0)20 7729 9888
or: kate@vilmagold.com
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