Sarah Ortmeyer
25 Feb - 03 Jun 2012
SARAH ORTMEYER
SCHAAK SHOW
25 February – 3 June, 2012
SCHAAK SHOW at S.M.A.K. is the first Belgian solo presentation of work by Sarah Ortmeyer (°1980, Frankfurt am Main). The project was conceived specially for the Kunst Nu room and combines several sculptures in an installation focusing on the game of chess and powers of allurement. The sculptures are composed of chess boards and various materials – the base is always classical marble. Part of the sculptures consists of Ortmeyer’s own artist’s publications, GRANDMASTERS WORLDCHAMPIONS, with pin-up photos of half-naked female world champions and grandmasters of chess.
Ortmeyer’s work makes use of such varied icons as Yves Saint Laurent, the black market, the German reunification, Playboy, Mickey Mouse Magazine or Vogue, the French Resistance, the ocean, California, Immanuel Kant, Chanel, the Eiffel Tower, the Queen, Christmas, flora, the army, Shiloh Jolie-Pitt, sailor suits, the laurel wreath, marble sculptures or Karl Lagerfeld. In her article on Ortmeyer, Jenny Schlenzka notes an interesting parallel between Ortmeyer’s way of working and Claude Lévi-Strauss’ concept of ‘bricolage’. In his book ‘La Pensée Sauvage’ (1962) Lévi-Strauss cites a pure, untamed human notion which he links with the idea of ‘bricolage’. According to him, man constructs new structures in a closed world by means of tinkering, using a finite amount of material. Ortmeyer may do something similar in her oeuvre: she uses available signs, meanings and stories to compose new myths.
Ortmeyer’s work FAUST (2009) has been acquired for the S.M.A.K. collection.
A publication called GRANDMASTERS WORLDCHAMPIONS was made specifically for the SCHAAK SHOW installation and can also be purchased separately as an artist’s book.
SCHAAK SHOW
25 February – 3 June, 2012
SCHAAK SHOW at S.M.A.K. is the first Belgian solo presentation of work by Sarah Ortmeyer (°1980, Frankfurt am Main). The project was conceived specially for the Kunst Nu room and combines several sculptures in an installation focusing on the game of chess and powers of allurement. The sculptures are composed of chess boards and various materials – the base is always classical marble. Part of the sculptures consists of Ortmeyer’s own artist’s publications, GRANDMASTERS WORLDCHAMPIONS, with pin-up photos of half-naked female world champions and grandmasters of chess.
Ortmeyer’s work makes use of such varied icons as Yves Saint Laurent, the black market, the German reunification, Playboy, Mickey Mouse Magazine or Vogue, the French Resistance, the ocean, California, Immanuel Kant, Chanel, the Eiffel Tower, the Queen, Christmas, flora, the army, Shiloh Jolie-Pitt, sailor suits, the laurel wreath, marble sculptures or Karl Lagerfeld. In her article on Ortmeyer, Jenny Schlenzka notes an interesting parallel between Ortmeyer’s way of working and Claude Lévi-Strauss’ concept of ‘bricolage’. In his book ‘La Pensée Sauvage’ (1962) Lévi-Strauss cites a pure, untamed human notion which he links with the idea of ‘bricolage’. According to him, man constructs new structures in a closed world by means of tinkering, using a finite amount of material. Ortmeyer may do something similar in her oeuvre: she uses available signs, meanings and stories to compose new myths.
Ortmeyer’s work FAUST (2009) has been acquired for the S.M.A.K. collection.
A publication called GRANDMASTERS WORLDCHAMPIONS was made specifically for the SCHAAK SHOW installation and can also be purchased separately as an artist’s book.