HALLELUJAH! GOD IS A WOMAN
ANASTASIA BAY, HADASSAH EMMERICH, CHARLIE STEIN
From 18th February until 20th March 2021
The exhibition explores perceptions of cultural identity, bodies and intimacy, female self-reflection as well as an investigation of the human figure itself, through the eyes of the artists Anastasia Bay (b. 1988 - Brussels), Hadassah Emmerich (b. 1974 - Brussels) and Charlie Stein (b. 1986 - Berlin).
Anastasia BAY (*1988, Paris - FR)
Lives and works in Brussels, Belgium
Studies: Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, Paris
Anastasia Bay investigates the evolution of the human body among peremptory and ever-changing aesthetic diktats, combined with the energetic potential of the body itself. Her pictorial art expresses a satirical- caricatural humor and it investigates the potential of the human figure by using all its components and the various positions assumed by its body segments as well as their way of filling in or moving the space. From an execution point of view, she dissects the body in symbolic fragments pushing the figuration – deliberately represented – to the limits of the absurd. The artist is exploring figurative painting and deploying themes from the classical canon, nudes and still life, using bold shapes and lines. The canvas can enclose large-scale bodies, but it can also narrow down its focus to frame specific anatomical features. Anastasia Bay is constantly exploring different ways of treating the relation between the depicted bodies and their material support.
Charlie STEIN (*1986, Germany)
Lives and works in Berlin
Studies: M.A. Fine Art, State Academy of Fine Arts, Stuttgart
Charlie Stein's work explores the different perceptions of cultural identity in the context of a presumed global society. Her material often emerges through the act of conversation or research, which she translates into drawings, installations, objects, painting, and text. Digital media, social networks, and modern forms of communication form the central anchor points of her work, which she continually renegotiates. Charlie sees her process as a form of heuristics that she uses to systematically explore the world around her. In her work, she seeks to decipher what presents itself to us as reality and make it visually accessible in new ways. Narratives play a crucial role in her work; they are at once fiction constructed through language and reality generated. The tension between construct and reality, between authenticity and artificiality, represents the site of her artistic exploration.
Hadassah EMMERICH (*1974, Herleen - NL)
lives and works in Brussels
Studies: M.A Fine Art, Goldsmiths College, London
Body and identity, the sensory and the sensual, the commodification of the erotic and the exotic: these are frequently recurring themes in Hadassah Emmerich’s work. The sensuality of her painting resides not only on the surface of the (erotic) image but also in her refined use of colour and technical execution. Since 2016, Emmerich has worked with a new painting technique, using stencils cut from vinyl flooring, which she covers with ink and then impresses onto canvas, paper or a wall. Referring to the visual language of advertising and Pop art, she creates images that both aestheticise and problematize the female body. She depicts the paradox of simultaneous attraction and repulsion, intimacy and cool detachment, seduction and critique. In this way, Emmerich succeeds in making the act of looking truly provocative.