|
The First Art Newspaper on the Net |
|
Established in 1996 |
|
Monday, December 2, 2024 |
|
VOID to publish Elena Helfrecht's 'Plexus' |
|
|
Plexus by Elena Helfrecht, November 2023. 24 x 30 cm. 104 pages. Hardcover w/ French folds. Text by Camilla Grudova.
|
LONDON.- Following the death of her grandmother, artist Elena Helfrecht embarked on a photographic journey through her familys estate in Bavaria. Employing the interiors, objects and archives, she began to explore the ideas of inherited trauma and postmemorythe relationship following generations have to the traumas of those who came before.
In her black and white photographs, Helfrecht uses the house and its contents to stage an allegorical play. The interiors and still lifes, which at first glance appear to show mundane objects and scenes, become increasingly unsettling: stalactite-like deposits drip sideways from walls, dark chasms open up beneath the floor boards, a snake coils around a dolls house and chairs hang from the beams. As the narrative progresses, motifs of eggs, birds and fleshy growths (a nod to the title, Plexusa network of nerves or vessels) are interwoven with archival family photographs, hinting at links and connections between inscrutable symbols, people and places.
In the process of reconnecting the fragmentary history of my female lineage, the term re-membering becomes literal. Immersing myself into this story, I fill the gaps with dreams, associations and imagined scenes to create a narrative transgressing personal and national boundaries. The objects and architecture of the house become parabolic proxies and open a gate between the past and the present.
Helfrechts images symbolically allude to the unreal and imaginary creeping into recollections of personal and cultural histories. Confronting a past spanning four generations, Plexus represents through photographs the intersecting and reverberating echoes of mental health, war and history. The book features a short story by Camilla Grudova, who was named on the Granta Best of Young British Novelists list 2023. Grudovas piece The House Surgeon revolves around a disturbing growth that silently develops under the floorboards of a family home, drawing further upon the themes of inherited trauma presented through Helfrechts photographs.
Elena Helfrecht, born in Bavaria in 1992, is a German visual artist known for her dreamlike and surreal photographic works. Her practice mainly revolves around phenomena of consciousness, combining individual experiences with collective history. Her work has been exhibited at South London Gallery (UK), Galleria Civica Cavour (IT), The Benaki Museum (GR), Palácio das Artes (BR), Peckham 24 (UK), Photo Vogue Festival (IT), and Encontros da Imagem (PT).
She is a recipient of the British Journal of Photography International Photo Award, a Sony World Photo Award, the Camera Work Award and the AOP Student Award. She was selected as one of the Bloomberg New Contemporaries and nominated for the FOAM Paul Huf Award. Recently, VOID selected her as one of the Futures Photography Talents. Her work has been published in The New Yorker, ZEIT Magazin, Financial Times Weekend, The British Journal of Photography, Granta, Der Greif, and Source Magazine.
|
|
Today's News
November 19, 2023
Orlando Museum's ex-leader countersues, insisting 'Basquiats' are real
An exhibition of orcs and elves has rome abuzz, and bewildered
Auctions in New York reflect a dip in the market
Resignations roil Documenta show as war in Gaza polarizes art world
Christie's announces highlights of the '20th/21st Century: Milan Online Sale'
Roger Kastel, 'Jaws' poster artist, dies at 92
The first 'Hitchcock Blonde' Madeleine Carroll depicted by Philip De László will be offered at Christie's
Park Avenue Armory will host 'Illinoise' and 'Indra's Net' in 2024
SOM returns to Lever House, originally built in 1952, to complete a restoration for the 21st Century
With dad Ben Vereen by her side, Karon Davis turns to dance
VOID to publish Elena Helfrecht's 'Plexus'
Ahlers & Ogletree announces highlights included in two-day Jewelry & Gifting auction
An old watch gets a face-lift orchestrated by John Mayer
George Tscherny, whose graphic designs defined an era, is dead at 99
A.S. Byatt, scholar who foundl literary fame with fiction, dies at 87
Qui Nguyen was done writing plays. His family pulled him back in.
Peter and Merle Mullin receive Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2023 Historic Motoring Awards
Review: 'Florencia' brings Spanish back to the Met Opera
'How to Dance in Ohio': A story about autism and connection
Justin Torres, author of 'Blackouts,' wins National Book Award for Fiction
Pest control tips for mice - How high can they jump?
|
|
|
|
|
Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography, Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs, Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, . |
|
|
|
Royalville Communications, Inc produces:
|
|
|
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful
|
|