GUNILLA KLINGBERG
Gunilla Klingberg works with the concept of brands, elucidating how they invade and saturate our surroundings to a point at which their imagery and logos become subliminal, almost invisible. Klingberg uses famous brands, the icons of the banal, highlighting their ubiquity in different ways—for example, by transforming them into kaleidoscopic patterns in videos, mandalas on vinyl floors, etc. These hypnotic repetitions pervade her exhibition at Nordenhake, where the walls of the gallery have been covered by large orange stickers that form what looks like a burgeoning organic growth: gas station logos that have morphed into large lotus flowers. A huge candelabrum stands in the middle of the room, and garishly-colored candles burn and drip, creating puddles of wax on the floor. Some New-Agey phrases have been cut from mirrored glass and mounted on the wall. One says "Seduction of Spirit," and indeed, the visual impact is overwhelming. An atmosphere of playfulness, but also of an unlikely serenity, holds sway. Corporations and New Age spirituality might seem to be opposites, but Klingberg shows them to be joined in an alliance—namely, consumerism. One can't help but wonder what will happen when her own signature mode of expression has become a brand in itself.