Künstlerhaus Bethanien

Nathalie Latham

02 - 18 May 2008

Nathalie Latham
safeguarding (a work in progress)
2nd – 18th May 2008, Studio 2
Opening: Wednesday, 30th April 2008, from 7 pm (Closed on 1st May)
Discussions with the artist in the exhibition (English): 6 pm on May 3, 4, 10, 11 and 18

Nathalie Latham travels to very different countries all over the world, seeking to understand the universal quality within the manifold forms of human experience and to express it by artistic means. Documenting the living conditions, cultures and emotional concerns of the people that she meets, she wants her artistic work to sharpen each individual’s awareness of his/her shared global responsibility for humanity as a whole, for the conservation of our environment, and for a universal yet diverse cultural heritage that is threatened in many places.
“safeguarding” is part of a long-term project of the same name; it examines the conditions and problems of some countries that Latham has visited in five video projections and a series of large-format photographs. Her themes include the material poverty and spiritual wealth of India; the destruction of the environment in China, where it is impossible – as a consequence of tradition or politics - to voice certain matters openly; or accounts of the lives and suffering of political refugees.
Nathalie Latham uses her photos, videos and texts to create vivid and extremely beautiful images, which direct the viewer’s attention to ecological problems and human destinies, but also to the beauty of our world and its diversity of cultures.
Nathalie Latham holds a fellowship from the Australia Council for the Arts in the context of our International Studio Programme.