Echoes of Matter Exhibition

 

Quantum Oddity Gallery - Berlin - Opening: 21.11.24  7pm

 

Christ Baptista, Claudia Chaseling, Kata Unger, Siegfried Max Berno

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The exhibition Echoes of Matter at Quantum Oddity Gallery brings together the works of Christ

Baptista, Siegfried Max Berno, Claudia Chaseling and Kata Unger. The title of the exhibition refers

to the way in which the works are both literally concerned with matter as something that is

tangible, such as the material realities of creating artworks, as well as in an expanded sense in

that matter may be a vessel that holds the potential to explore abstract concepts. By challenging

and even breaking the boundaries of their respective mediums, the artists unlock new meanings

and associations that, in this context, may be understood as the echoes of the physical matter at

hand. Challenging the viewer’s perception as well as their preconceived ideas of the materials or

subject matter, the artists in this exhibition provoke a novel understanding of our own reality.

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Working in oil on linen, Christ Baptista navigates the space between figuration and abstraction,

depicting ambiguous human and non-human forms caught in moments of movement and

transformation. This transitory state captures the viewer, leaving them in anticipation of how the

tension and energy within the composition may resolve itself. The partially obscured faces, limbs,

florals and furniture depicted by Baptista have an ephemeral presence. Colours merge as though

moving in water, and the apparitions or dream-like sequences appear as though they might come

undone in front of our eyes.

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For Baptista, the subject matter is only secondary. Each figurative element acts as a structural

device rather than a narrative one. His compositions, based on digitally collaged and distorted

found images, are rooted in reality yet estranged from it, resulting in depictions that are both

familiar and elusive. Baptista draws inspiration from film, using intentional absences to evoke a

greater picture through what remains unseen. Ancient relics, often partially destroyed, further

inspire him to leave parts of figures and objects unfinished, inviting viewers to fill in the visual

gaps, like archaeologists reconstructing the past.

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Through abstract paintings and sculptures, Siegfried Max Berno encourages viewers to explore

the uncharted depths of the subconscious. His series Subconscious Reflections is devoid of any

figuration and thus provides a field of colour, texture, light and shadow that allows for

introspection and reflection. Berno often employs unconventional tools or materials and takes an

explorative and experimental approach. The materiality of his works is striking in the way he gives

depth to the almost monochrome composition using a variety of textures layered on the canvas or

paper. Berno’s sculptures, carved with an electric wire into styrofoam and then finished with a

glossy resin, show a free-flowing hand movement akin to brushstrokes.

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The emphasis in Berno’s practice is as much on the process as well as the desire to evoke deeper

contemplation in the viewers. Thematically, Berno takes great interest in the human mind and its

ability to make sense of not only the world in which we live but also abstract concepts such as

our sense of self in relation to the universe and to each other. Berno’s canvases act as a kind of

mirror and window, whereby as a viewer one might be able to access a level of awareness that

Berno recognises as lacking in our fast-paced, media-driven, consumer society.

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Playing with the viewer’s perception through abstract forms as well as the physical form of the

canvas, Claudia Chaseling constructs a unique pictorial world. Upon closer inspection, one might

find that the vibrantly colourful compositions are in fact not devoid of figuration. Organic and

architectural forms interlace, grow and mutate before our eyes while we try to make sense of our

relation to each element in time and space. Though deriving much of her subject matter from the

real world, the colours and forms are abstracted resulting in scenes reminiscent of science

fiction. Dizzying shifts in perspective have the viewer question their grasp on reality.1

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Layer upon layer of information is brought to canvas by the artist, colour and texture being her

language of choice. Chaseling’s research into natural and human disasters, such as the use of

depleted uranium in weapons of war, are heavy-weighing topics that are embedded in her works.

Aware that many viewers may not be familiar with these issues, Chaseling incorporates QR codes

as well as functioning web links to articles on the topics. Furthermore, blank canvas breaks

Bojana Pejic, The Day Before Tomorrow, 2016: Pejic suggests that while Chaseling’s paintings may be viewed as science fictional

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projections, they are not situated in the near future but a commentary on contemporary issues.

through the layers of paint in splash-like forms, signifying blind spots in our knowledge and lack of

access to the full story. Both the incorporation of text and these “splashes” echo narrative

techniques that are common in graphic novels - a medium Chaseling explores in her work Murphy

the mutant.

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Though working on a traditional loom to create intricate and colour-intensive tapestries, Kata

Unger is closer to a painter than a textile artist. Producing tapestries is a labour intensive craft,

taking around three to four months for each work. The way the threads are coded to create the

work line for line, from left to right may be equated to the binary system. One thread going

vertically and one horizontally much like the way in which computer system use 0s and 1s to

represent data.

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Thematically, Unger explores digitalisation in her work CrackMe oder mein Hirn in der Cloud (EN:

CrackMe or my Brain in the Cloud). This tapestry depicts a cyber-landscape of brightly coloured

pixels that shine through a black void. Information is present but not easily legible to the human

eye insinuating the code has yet to be cracked. The tapestry bridges a dichotomy between our

increasingly online lives, our brains being virtually stored in online data clouds, and the handicraft

of weaving a tactile, warm and organic fabric such as wool. Through her tapestries Unger makes

abstract concepts tangible. The work Plasmawave is not only a painterly exploration of colour and

form translated to fabric but also the depiction of a feeling that cannot be described in words.

Psychedelic waves of colour swirl out of a female figure’s head as she lays reclined. A second

figure has disappeared into the swathe of blue, purple and red hanging on by one foot to the

viewer’s reality.

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Though markedly different in medium and approach, the works in the exhibition Echoes of Matter

collectively explore the realm between figuration and abstraction. Christ Baptista allows figurative

elements in his paintings to dissolve, teasing our mind’s desire to categorise and understand as

they elude our grasp on physics and biological form. While Siegfried Max Berno’s works are

devoid of any recognisable forms or symbols, viewers are free to project their own meaning onto

the canvases and sculptures. Claudia Chaseling incorporates text as well as natural and

architectural forms, that are not immediately identifiable due to being camouflaged within the

composition as a whole. Meanwhile, Kata Unger weaves characters and symbols into an outer-

worldly landscape, loosening our hold on the tangible while reigning us back in through the

tactility of her medium.

 

Marlis Stachowitz, In der Pracht des Teppichs das Dilemma unserer Zeit, 2019: Stachowitz draws attention to the 2

overlap in the history of the first computer system and the loom.

 

Text: Isabelle Thul