Vasiliy Tsereteli
12 May - 05 Jun 2010
VASILIY TSERETELI
"Objects"
May 12 - June 5, 2010
What happens to childhood after it ends? Before inevitably ending up in the trash, unwanted dolls spend some time stacked in some faraway corners of a storeroom. There are, however, high-minded people who collect these items, forgotten by their owners. These people are junkmen, and their job is not popular among the money-driven hobbies of today’s society.
Vasiliy Tsereteli has strolled along the flea markets of Europe, Russia and the States armed with a camera, all the while shooting all those gorgeous curly beauties, innocent toddlers and wide-eyed girls who stare at this, let’s face it, wonderful world with their huge plastic eyes. Not everything is spotlessly perfect in the dollworld, truth be told, there are some horror movies where dolls are possessed by ominous ghosts who force them to do acts of disgrace and indecency. But these stories are clearly told by people who are not in their right mind. Real dolls from the flea markets’ vast rows do not seem to promise anything of the kind. And to think of the Nutcracker...
It is possible that these dolls could stop the gaze of a collector in search of an exclusive rarity. But these folks are interested mainly in “real”, Pre-War vintage objects. Though, sure, Barbie doll is a universally respected matron nowadays. It’s now safe to say that she has turned fifty-one not so long ago. Maybe this material could also be of use for a research paper in the spirit of cultural studies. Cultural historians should take note of the combination of a pink boy doll and a Catholic Madonna who peacefully share the space on the counter. But the scientists are not keen on exploring subjects that defy logical analysis. They wouldn’t want anything to do with the tender and shy creatures that Vasiliy Tsereteli discovered among the rows of unpretentious plastic figurines.
Andrey Kovalev
Translated by Valentine Djakonov
"Objects"
May 12 - June 5, 2010
What happens to childhood after it ends? Before inevitably ending up in the trash, unwanted dolls spend some time stacked in some faraway corners of a storeroom. There are, however, high-minded people who collect these items, forgotten by their owners. These people are junkmen, and their job is not popular among the money-driven hobbies of today’s society.
Vasiliy Tsereteli has strolled along the flea markets of Europe, Russia and the States armed with a camera, all the while shooting all those gorgeous curly beauties, innocent toddlers and wide-eyed girls who stare at this, let’s face it, wonderful world with their huge plastic eyes. Not everything is spotlessly perfect in the dollworld, truth be told, there are some horror movies where dolls are possessed by ominous ghosts who force them to do acts of disgrace and indecency. But these stories are clearly told by people who are not in their right mind. Real dolls from the flea markets’ vast rows do not seem to promise anything of the kind. And to think of the Nutcracker...
It is possible that these dolls could stop the gaze of a collector in search of an exclusive rarity. But these folks are interested mainly in “real”, Pre-War vintage objects. Though, sure, Barbie doll is a universally respected matron nowadays. It’s now safe to say that she has turned fifty-one not so long ago. Maybe this material could also be of use for a research paper in the spirit of cultural studies. Cultural historians should take note of the combination of a pink boy doll and a Catholic Madonna who peacefully share the space on the counter. But the scientists are not keen on exploring subjects that defy logical analysis. They wouldn’t want anything to do with the tender and shy creatures that Vasiliy Tsereteli discovered among the rows of unpretentious plastic figurines.
Andrey Kovalev
Translated by Valentine Djakonov