07 Jan 2009

Fake or Feint Opens its Doors on January 10th

The first scenario of the exhibition series fake or feint, from January 10th to February 7th 2009, shows photographic self-portraits by Claude Cahun and an installation by Eran Schaerf. The opening is on January 10th from 7 to 9 p.m.

Claude Cahun's (1894-1954) photographic work was widely overlooked by art history until its rediscovery in the 1980s, when, against the background of feminist debates, it gained unexpected relevance. Influenced by contemporary currents of symbolism and surrealism, her self-portraits display a unique perspective on the body, staged as a projection screen for social norms and personal and external desires. A play with disguise and gender masquerade inquires the relation of gaze and being seen, and the way this becomes effective in the visual setup of the portrait. Her work thereby refers to cultural stereotypes of her time, which are decoded and subverted, confronting them with a subtle and unpredictable expressivity. Shown are three photographic works from the 1920s.

Eran Schaerf sets up a combined re-enactment of prior works.

The installation Voile lances the room with a cloth panel, its course following the basic architectonic structures. In a gesture of reduplication a second, semi-transparent room is created. The attention is directed to the way how architecture opens the room as a stage for views and movements, thus enabling and structuring social interaction. This diaphanous barrier, resembling a curtain or a veil, is a marking that unfolds a play of visibility that crosses the coding of the public and the intimate.

The situation established by Voile is continued by a narration of the Sapeurs, drawing on clothing as a practice with manifold cultural, gender-related and functional codifications. La Sape (short for: La Société des Ambianceurs et des Personnes Élégantes) is a movement originating from Kongo. Its mostly male protagonists use western designer brands for distinctive self-representation. Eran Schaerf frames the intricate trails of global exchange and the contradictions arising from acts of appropriation and translation into a narrative setting: A shirt by Paul Smith becomes a momentum of crisis in the life of a Sapeur. In Paris, the Sapeur comes across a shirt, which has its own history of migration. It is tailored from a Kanga, a rectangular piece of cloth, which in Africa serves in different functions as a garment.

fake or feint is a seven-month exhibition project taking place at Berlin Carré at Alexanderplatz, Berlin. Five consecutive exhibition scenarios and a film scenario at Kino Arsenal at Potsdamer Platz deal with the politics of the surface and acts of marking as an intervention. Internationally renowned artists show works ranging from photography, video- and space installation to site-specific intervention. A ‚second section' designed by artist Katrin Mayer hosts a process-related archive with selected material. A series of events accompanies the exhibitions with seminars, lectures, performances and artist talks. fake or feint is funded by Hauptstadtkulturfonds.

Upcoming scenarios:

Scenario 2 (February 21st to March 21st, 2009)
Kaucyila Brooke, Sofie Thorsen / Katharina Lampert

Scenario 3 (March 9th, 16th and 23rd, 2009)
A film program curated by Elena Zanichelli and Joerg Franzbecker, taking place at Kino Arsenal at Potsdamer Platz.

Scenario 4 (April 4th to May 2nd, 2009)
Amy Granat, Annja Krautgasser, Katrin Mayer

Scenario 5 (May 16th to June 13th, 2009)
Daniela Comani, Keren Cytter, Heiko Karn

Scenario 6 (June 27th to July 25th, 2009)
e-Xplo, Daniel Knorr, Eske Schlüters / Axel Gaertner

Series of lectures and performances with contributions by:

Martin Beck / Johannes Schülein, Elena Esposito, Tom Holert, Jan Kedves, Hanne Loreck, Annette Maechtel, Performerstammtisch, Markus Rautzenberg, Tim Stüttgen and Michael Zinganel.

Team:

Joerg Franzbecker with Martin Beck (curators), Adrian Bremenkamp (catalogue and archive), Bärbel Hartje (consultant), Katrin Mayer (exhibition design), Flo Gaertner (graphic design), Elena Zanichelli (film program).

Exhibition venues:

Berlin Carré shopping mall at Alexanderplatz, Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 13, Berlin
Film program: Kino Arsenal at Potsdamer Platz (March 9th, 16th and 23rd, 2009)

Opening hours:

Thursday + Friday 4 to 7 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on appointment.

For further information concerning events and the upcoming scenarios please see: http://www.fakeorfeint.org or contact the project office.