31/1/2008
Amy Simon
Two venues, Stockholm
Manege - from the Central Park portfolio. Simon works with and in places that have special meaning for her during different stages in her life and has consequently returned to over and over again. On exhibition at Galleri Martenson & Persson a series of drawings, while at Kulturhuset are displayed photographs with kicking hooves, wild, overwrought eyes and silent screams, along with snorting dragons.
Amy Simon works with and in places that have special meaning for her during
different stages in her life and has consequently returned to over and over again.
It can be Central Park in New York, Wengen in Switzerland, Marrakech in Morocco, or
Miami in Florida. What distinguishes the choice of location is that they touch on
memory and feelings of belonging. She uses images to strengthen and re-experience.
These images are keys to enhancing a cathartic experience, which anchor the memories
and make them extremely personal. Editing takes place at the moment of shooting.
Through the lens she sees the final result.
As far back as the Byzantine kingdom there existed simple carousels. The author
Anatole France (1844-1924) explained why we ride carousels: the need for movement,
of dizziness, a secret longing to be taken away, to be astounded. Originally the
carousel was a type of riding contest. The French word manège, as in the exhibitions
title, makes no discrepancy between the carousel and riding a horse.
In the exhibition at Kulturhuset, photographs from 2007, are horses with kicking
hooves, wild, overwrought eyes and silent screams, along with snorting dragons. The
strong clear colors have been repainted many times throughout the years but are
still vivid. Amy Simon has used the carousel as a starting point in several works
since 1990. The over-dimensioned horse sculptures, along with the rest of the carved
figures are equally beautiful as horrifying.
The drawings exhibited at Galleri Mårtenson & Persson rely on this same theme, but
now in segmented miniature. The essence of the larger works can be sensed, only here
it has manifested into private delicate colored pencil encounters with metal, wood,
and paint.
Amy Simon has exhibited at Malmö Konstmuseum and several galleries in Stockholm, at
Centre Culturel Suédois in Paris as well as in New York. Her artworks encompass
photography and drawing. In earlier exhibitions she has amongst other issues touched
upon the question of places and their importance and our realistic understanding of
them. She has also made a documentary film. Born and raised in New York City, Amy
lives in Stockholm, Sweden since 1993.
Venues:
Kulturhuset Stockholm
Sergels Torg - 10327 Stockholm, Sweden
Tel: +46 8 508 314 00
E-mail: info@kulturhuset.stockholm.se
http://www.kulturhuset.stockholm.se
Galleri Martenson & Persson
Karlavägen 20 - 114 31 Stockholm, Sweden
Tel: +46 8 660 68 02
Email: info@gallerimartenson-persson.se
http://www.gallerimartenson-persson.se