VIERSEN.- The exhibition by Zohar Fraiman at the Städtische Galerie in Viersen includes about 25 paintings from the last four years, two participatory installations, and an earlier small drawing. The artist, who has lived in Berlin since 2009, reveals the harsh reality of social networks, their influence on the everyday lives of young women, and how they turn pop culture idols into contemporary icons. Visitors will recognize contemporary singers, figures from art history, or characters from cartoons. They can even participate in creating the artworks by taking selfies with painted masks and mirrors ("Meme Me", 2024) or sticking their heads through holes in a painting ("Face Off", 2024). This makes them part of the artworks in a playful experience reminiscent of Coney Island or theme parks, suggesting that we are all more or less both perpetrators and victims in social networks.

In Zohar Fraiman's works, references to contemporary popular culture and new digital practices are easily recognizable. Here an American singer, there a Hollywood actress, somewhere a cartoon character, and everywhere smartphones with multiple cameras and glowing screens. We live in a highly digitized world where contact with our friends is made through short messages, emojis, or photos (of what we eat or of ourselves). Some of these conversations even take place without us ever meeting the people in real life. A digital schizophrenia that we have become accustomed to, but which can have devastating consequences in some cases—such as when teenagers read mocking or angry comments under the images they have shared. The internet and social networks are a distorted mirror that we like to look into as long as it shows us—like in the story of Snow White—the idealized reflection we desire. Zohar Fraiman's paintings are full of direct references to this parallel world of flashy sweets and overpriced fashion items. One consumes appetizing cream cakes ("Nom Nom", 2023, "Tonz of Buns", 2023, or "Sweetest Taboo", 2023), buys luxury goods ("Shop Till you Drop", 2024), and shares fruits whose emojis are used to send sexting messages ("Bootylicious", 2024). Most of the young women depicted in the paintings do not look particularly happy; their smiles are frozen at the moment of photographing, they are spied on by their friends who do not hesitate to comment on their appearance ("xoxo", 2014).

In 1990, Cindy Sherman presented her series of History Portraits to the public. The photographer, well-versed in costumes, makeup, and character creation, plays with art history. She appropriates icons of painting and interprets them through her typical play of disguise, masquerade, and makeup. In another context, Andy Warhol quickly recognized that the stars he met at social events—from Jackie Kennedy to Liza Minelli to Blondie—were the new icons of society. Often, they were also the patrons of his works. In Zohar Fraiman's paintings, one finds Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Zendaya, Kim Kardashian, and probably other members of their clan that I can't identify. But she connects these over-mediatized contemporary female figures with those of art history: Botticelli's Venus, Modigliani's woman with a hat, or Giotto's kiss. All these women possess eternal youth—be it in 15th-century paintings with their timeless beauties or Kim Kardashian, who reveals nothing of her 45 years on her Instagram account. A persistent lightheartedness that is promoted and demanded by social networks. The photographs are filtered there, the skin smoothed, and the facial features perfectly illuminated. However, when one looks at the portraits painted by Zohar Fraiman, it is immediately apparent that the faces are combinations of different sources: movie stars, cartoon characters, and figures from art history. Here, the artist reveals the schizophrenia associated with the presence in social networks. A virtual existence consisting of lies, deceptive appearances, and flattering staging. Ultimately, a certain melancholy emanates from her works—behind a smile perfectly covered with blood-red lip gloss hides a somewhat sad young woman dreaming of becoming a Disney princess.

Smartphones are undoubtedly responsible for all these contemporary adventures—objects that came onto the market in 2007 with the introduction of the first iPhone by Steve Jobs and, less than two decades later, are indispensable in our daily lives. Without them, it would be impossible to buy a subway ticket in Oslo, confirm payment for a flight to Tahiti, or simply know where you are and in which direction to walk. Their intense use makes them melt in Zohar Fraiman's pictures. Under the influence of the heat they emit from excessive use, but probably also in connection with the melting clocks in Salvador Dalí's paintings. The exact title of his most famous painting is "The Persistence of Memory" (1931), in which three clocks are melting "like Camembert" (according to Dalí). Every element in this work deals with symbols and symbolism—in the great tradition of surrealist works. Here, too, Zohar Fraiman refers to art history by making smartphones melt. But while Dalí's clocks are soft because they symbolize passing time and our inability to influence it, Zohar Fraiman's smartphones melt from overuse. Similar to clocks, they are tools used to mark time, preserve memory, and create memories. However, once these memories and the memory are filtered through social networks, they consist of lies and distortions of reality.

Thibaut de Ruyter

Zohar Fraiman was born in Jerusalem, Israel, in 1987 and has been living and working in Berlin for almost fifteen years. She studied at the Jerusalem Studio School, Israel (2005-09) and graduated as a master student from Berlin University of the Arts (2011-15). Fraiman’s work is regularly featured in international group and individual exhibitions, including at the Han Pin Art Museum, Hangzhou (2015, China), Museion Atelierhaus Bozen (2016, Italy), Künsthalle Lüneburg (2017, Germany), Schloss Achberg (2017, Germany), Turps Gallery London (2018, UK), Museum der bildenden Künste Leipzig (2019, Germany), Petach Tikva Museum of Art (2019, Israel), Kunstverein der Familie Montez, Frankfurt (2020, Germany), Show Me Your Sheroes - PRISKA PASQUER GALLERY, (2021, Germany), ARCO Madrid (2022, Spain), Artissima - Galerie Russi Klenner, (2022, Italy), Art Cologne - PRISKA PASQUER GALLERY, (2022, Germany) and Kunsthalle Wilhelmshafen (2023, Germany), Tedding Trending - PRISKA PASQUER PARIS, (2023, France), LIMINAL - PRISKA PASQUER GALLERY, (2024, Germany), Dissonance - Platform Germany curated by Christoph Tannert + Mark Gisbourne, Stadtgalerie Kiel, (2024 Germany), Solo Booth - Art Brussels (2024, Belgium), Game of Phones - Galerie Russi Klenner (2024, Germany), Dissonance - curated by Christoph Tannert + Mark Gisbourne, National Gallery Bucharest, (2024, Romania), Meme Me - curated by Katharina Schilling, Haus am Lützowplatz (2024, Germany).

She is a member of Saloon, a women’s network in the Berlin art scene.
In 2022, Fraiman released her artist book titled 'Self-ish', a limited edition of 300 copies, each signed and numbered by the artist. The book reflects on digital life, exploring themes of identity, self-representation, and the influence of social media. Tying into Fraiman’s ‘Self-ish’ series, the publication delves into the concept of the selfie and the way we present ourselves online, creating a unique dialogue between contemporary art and digital culture.