Klara Liden's project at the Reena Spaulings Gallery transforms the space, bringing elements of the urban landscape inside. Born in Stockholm and based in Berlin, Liden is known for her provocative, site-specific installations incorporating urban materials and themes. In "Verdebelvedere," she uses materials familiar to every New Yorker—silver-painted tar paper, bitumen, and plywood—evoking the city's buildings and rooftops. This industrial theme emphasizes the raw, ever-changing nature of urban life.
The exhibition includes videos of Liden's performances, where she attempts to squeeze through diamond-shaped viewholes cut into construction plywood walls. These performances poignantly link the city's perpetual construction to human experiences of constraint and freedom, highlighting the resilience required to navigate urban spaces. A soundscape blending ambient noises and electronic music enhances the immersive atmosphere. Liden’s integration of construction materials extends to the benches in the gallery, crafted from construction walls and supported by bags of charcoal briquettes. This setup invites visitors to engage with the contrasting textures of rough wood, shiny silver, and earthy green tones, making visitors feel part of the city's fabric.
"Verdebelvedere" is a testament to Liden's ability to blend art with the realities of city living, creating a space that resonates with both familiarity and innovation. The exhibition challenges viewers to reconsider their surroundings and the impact of urban environments on their lives, making it a compelling and insightful experience.
Polina Ostrovskaya
Linden's use of industrial materials is not something new, but it is done in an interesting way. I like how you describe the experience of the room her artwork was in to the reader, with all the plywood benches as well as the screens with her video performance. It's also nice that you talked about why she uses industrial materials and themes through her work, as it is largely because of her experiences in living in an urban environment. However, I wish this response had a few sentences with context about Linden, maybe of her age or background.
ReplyDeleteI think your vocabulary here does well in describing the tactile feeling of the city that was present in this exhibition. Having been to the exhibition, I got to relive it through your description. The only thing I would add is maybe some more description of that video, the way the artist was struggling to get through that hole, how frustrating it was to watch them struggle, and how painful it looked. There was also some kind of electronic dance music playing as well if I remember which added another layer of feeling to the space. I felt like it added frenzied energy, especially to the video.
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ReplyDeleteThis is a great review and I especially appreciate your clear argument and opinion on the space. I also think you did a great job summarizing the gallery experience in a way that was clear and easy to picture. For some of your points specifically on the performance video, I would maybe consider going into more detail on exactly it “...ties the concept of the city…” only because this is a great point that I think could be expanded on more. The only other thing I would consider editing with this review is the inclusion of the words “Outside world of the city” as just saying “the city” would suffice as it implies being outside. But again that is only minor as the rest of the review is really great and hard to criticize.
I really like how you described Klara Liden’s project as bringing the city indoors, especially how she used materials from the streets to create such an immersive urban environment. I remember when I was in the exhibition, my whole attention was captured by the video because that caused a lot of frustration. I personally did not feel the connection between the city and the human experience when I was there. However, I appreciate how you noted the textures and contrasts that transform mundane materials into a reflective and engaging artistic experience. I guess the video itself is not effective, but the whole exhibition, with the benches and walls, makes the exhibition more immersive.
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