Neil Farber
dal 12/2/2009 al 13/3/2009
Segnalato da
12/2/2009
Neil Farber
Mogadishni Cph, Copenhagen
The artist presents his famous and intriguing works on paper as well as (for the first time ever) new works on canvas and board. Illness and death are recurrent themes in his new works, in which his well-known, peculiar, round headed figures seem to multiply like harmful cells - or spread like an epidemic - across the picture surface.
MOGADISHNI proudly presents the third solo exhibition in MOGADISHNI by the Canadian
artist Neil Farber (B.1975. Lives and works in Winnipeg, Canada). Neil Farber will
be presenting his famous and intriguing works on paper as well as (for the first
time ever) new works on canvas & board.
Illness and death are recurrent themes in Farber´s new works, in which his
well-known, peculiar, round headed figures seem to multiply like harmful cells – or
spread like an epidemic – across the picture surface. The unpretentiousness and
innocence of the works are being infected by something dangerous, disturbing and
absurd, and the simple, expressive line is added a notable weight. In the twinkling
of an eye small transparent blots of running paint are transformed to swirling,
absorbing water masses or to streams of blood from cut-off heads and the hair on the
back of the viewer’s neck begin to bristle.
The main idea behind the show is the difference between the paintings and the
drawings. “At this point I'm quite comfortable with the drawings and they seem to
work out as I imagine them. The paintings are different as I have only been working
on boards and canvases the last 8 months or so after not really painting much on my
own for the last ten years. I'm still getting used to it, so there is more variety
as I figure what I like or don't like, what I can do and what I can't. At one point
I imagined a series of work related to cannibalism and I thought I would call the
show "Canniballistics", like ballistics from a police laboratory. The more I thought
about the work related to cannibalism the less interested I was in making it, but I
still wanted to use the title”. (Neil Farber January 2009).
The threats against the self or humanity are manifold, and Farber wrestles with both
inner and outer demons and – with an equal amount of awe and mocking irony – faces
our mutual feeling of anxiety. We are all in the firing line and the ideas for
little, eeriness-causing narrative sequences, which thematize our vulnerability,
seem to almost pile up inside the artist.
Farber´s surreal, obscure imagery with its varicoloured “overpopulation” of tiny
people, frogs, rats, snakes, captured maidens, dragons, cats and ghosts belongs on
the border line between childhood fear and grown-up fantasy and act as the basis for
a dramatic description of the darker aspects of the human psyche. Aspects, which are
disturbing and upsetting – perhaps even nightmarishly evil – but nonetheless serve
as an integrated part of our identity. And on closer inspection may appear to
contain certain redeeming qualities – like the vampire with the dejected look on its
face, standing forth as a victim itself.
Farber enjoys great recognition and has shown internationally both as a solo artist
and as part of the artist group “The Royal Art Lodge”, which was founded in 1996 and
in addition to Farber also includes Michael Dumontier and Farber’s nephew Marcel
Dzama. In the last years Farber has, among other places, exhibited at Clementine
Gallery (N.Y.), Richard Heller Gallery (Santa Monica), Houldsworth (London) and
Alice Day Gallery (Brussels). In 2008 Farber had solo shows at Sies + Höke Gallery,
Düsseldorf and Richard Heller Gallery, Santa Monica, CA.
His works has been widely reproduced, most recently on the cover of ’Comic Release:
Negotiating Identity for a New Generation’ and in a monograph published by Richard
Heller.
Opening reception Friday February 13th at 5-9 pm
Mogadishni Cph
Carl Jacobsensvej 16 - Copenhagen
Wednesday – Friday 12-5 pm, Saturday 12-3 pm
Free admission