the_vanishing

The Vanishing

an introduction (extract) y Florian P. Fischer (BBK Hannover, D)

Parapluie, Andrée Julikà Tavares and Gianluca Monnier – The Vanishing

The exhibition deals with the contrast between disappearance and manifestation, the ambiguous, the before and behind, and what is hidden behind the visible. In a preliminary conversation, Gianluca stated: “Each work is a sentence in a story we have been telling for many years. We never sought a specific theme. We work based on what we see and find. In the background, there is probably a theme.” Let us see if we can approach the theme today.

Andrée and Gianluca met in 2007 in Rome. Both were born in 1971—she in Paris, he in Rome. Andrée trained as an actress, a profession in which she worked for four years. She then studied fine arts and film in Geneva. Gianluca studied Italian literature in Milan, worked as a journalist for television, and maintains his connections in Ticino. The family now primarily resides in Hildesheim, but their international background repeatedly takes them abroad. They have collaborative projects, including full-length documentary films, in addition to this exhibition. These long films will soon be screened here in Hildesheim at the VHS-Kellerkino. Their documentary films address social issues through artistic means. Additionally, Andrée and Gianluca each have their own artistic projects. They possess an international exhibition practice and have won numerous international awards and grants. Incidentally, they have also recently established a studio here in the Stammelbach Speicher.

I was astonished that this thematically dense and profound exhibition manages with such sparse material usage. Andrée and Gianluca work with found objects. Many of the exhibits come from extensive research at flea markets. For example, the 19 wedding photos were sourced from flea markets in Germany, Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. One could speak of ready-mades. I also sensed a connection to Conceptual Art and Arte Povera.

One of the conceptual principles of Arte Povera was to bridge the gap between life and art by using everyday materials. Andrée and Gianluca define the use of everyday materials in their own way. The found objects are not merely everyday items but objects of use. They bear the signs of human use. The found objects are collected and questioned about their history. This raises the question of memory. What is false and what is true? What do the ready-mades reveal after undergoing the “mediumistic process” (as Duchamp put it) in the hands of the artists?

White – Installation Bra

A few dozen gypsum-cast bras are the opposite of sensual; they resemble bones. The “No Bra” movement was already part of the women's movement by 1968. The bra was seen as a symbol of patriarchal oppression. Through public bra burnings, women demanded the approval of the pill, the abolition of §218, equal pay for equal work, and the end of male dominance.

The Vanished

19 wedding photos, purchased by Andrée and Gianluca at flea markets in four different European countries, framed behind glass. These are old photos, possibly 50 or 100 years old. The wedding photo with the bride in a white dress follows the same cliché. It depicts a newlywed couple, so to speak, on their way to their wedding night. The bride in a white dress with a veil appears pure and virginal. Soon, she will be in bed to bear children. The wedding photo is one of the essential family documents. But something is wrong here. The image of the bride has been scratched with a sharp object, making the person unrecognizable. Here, we have an even more radical intervention on the theme of “The Vanishing.” The woman disappears with the marriage. The individuality of the women in the pictures is erased. The bride exists only as a placeholder. It leaves the impression of “brideness.” The artists' intervention forces us to reflect on fundamental issues, on the individual reality behind the cliché.

Two Young Women in Bikinis

They could have come from the cover of a men's magazine from the 1950s, and maybe they did. The image has a history; what does it remind us of? The image of the woman is black and white, but the picture itself is not. The background has been overpainted in chamois; only the woman is important. This brings the figure to the forefront. The picture with the woman is simultaneously erotic, formally successful, and a reminiscence of Pop Art.

Holes

Two Montages with Four Building Silhouettes and Four by Nine Golden Sponges, and Four Building Silhouettes with Four by Six Silver Sponges

These are the facades of four Hildesheim buildings destroyed in World War II, which were rebuilt after the war (e.g., Knochenhauer Amtshaus, Templerhaus). In the 1950s, the community was actively involved in the discussion. They wanted to maintain the old town center's layout during reconstruction. The facades are traced as gray areas (or scratched into the photos in the other montage) to indicate that they deal with the gaps created by the war. The gold and silver of the sponges stand for wealth, for the beautiful appearance, for the power of investors and developers. The sponge stands for housework and erasing. Did we erase the memory? Is the faithful reconstruction a concession to backward-looking design ideas? One sees the four abstracted facades, and behind them lies the question of the causes of destruction. The impression of Disneyland promotes tourism, as seen in the new development of Frankfurt's Römerberg. The counterposition is to leave a destroyed building as a memorial for future generations, like the ruin of the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in Berlin, whose bell tower remained standing next to the new building. These montages could also stand for the theme of the exhibition: The Vanishing.

Florian P. Fischer (BBK Hannover, D), 19.5.2024

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