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Artist Janaina Tschäpe to exhibit work in UB Art Gallery
By KRISTIN E. M. RIEMER
Reporter Contributor
The second solo show in North America of the work of German-born artist Janaina Tschäpe will open on Feb. 18 in the UB Art Gallery in the Center for the Arts with a talk by the artist at 5 p.m., followed by a reception from 6-7:30 p.m.
In addition to the reception and the talk, which also will feature exhibition curator Sandra Firmin, screenings of Tschäpe's 2000 video, "He drowned in her eyes as she called him to follow," will be held at 6 p.m., 6:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.
"Ponquoge Bridge" from "100 Little Deaths," 1998.
In conjunction with the exhibition opening, the Center for the Arts will hold an open house, with tours of the facility at 6 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.
The exhibition, which is free and open to the public, will be on view through March 26.
Tschäpe's namesake is an Afro-Brazilian water goddess, a birthright that seems to have compelled the artist to develop a personal lexicon of aquatic forms and references within her video installations, photographs and drawings. Her performances transform landscapes into enchanted environments populated with inert bodies, fantastical characters and embryonic shapes.
Included in the exhibition are examples of inert bodies—as seen in the photographs from "100 Little Deaths," where the artist depicts herself prostrate in a variety of settings ranging from Amalfi and Montauk to the East Village and Flanders. Also included are videos and photographs of performers wearing costumes fabricated out of inflated and water-filled condoms, balloons and latex, which are reminiscent of amphibious creatures and embryonic shapes.
Born in Germany to a German father and Brazilian mother, Tschäpe grew up in Brazil and currently splits her time between Brazil and New York. She studied fine arts at Hochschule fur Bilende Kuenste in Hamburg, Germany, and received a master of fine arts degree from the School of Visual Arts in New York in 1998. She also completed an artist-in-residence program at the Museu de Arte Moderna, in Salvador, Brazil.
She has exhibited throughout much of Europe, South America and Asia, and had her first New York show in 2004. This exhibition is her second solo show in North America.
A color brochure with an essay by Firmin accompanies the exhibition and is available free of charge.
The opening-night events are sponsored by the UB Art Gallery, the Center for the Arts and the UB Alumni Association employee chapter.
The UB Art Gallery is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. For information, call 645-6912.