In Danish artist Ditte Gantriis' exhibition Institution is Something We All Receive as a Newborn Gift in Politikens Forhal, fine craftsmanship and heartfelt motifs are incorporated into and contrasted with the cool, institutional framework of the exhibition space.
In Danish artist Ditte Gantriis' exhibition Institution is Something We All Receive as a Newborn Gift in Politikens Forhal, fine craftsmanship and heartfelt motifs are incorporated into and contrasted with the cool, institutional framework of the exhibition space.
Through both older and newer works, the exhibition functions as a cohesive installation, commenting on a fact that applies to all of us in this part of the world: that for better or worse, we are surrounded by authorities and institutions that from cradle to grave register, monitor, and take care of us throughout our lives. It is this fundamental condition that the exhibition addresses and appears as an artistic response to and processing of. Specifically, Gantriis is concerned with how institutional intervention in our lives affects and leaves room for the intimate caregiving relationship.
The challenging conditions for intimate care is the recurring theme in the exhibition's various works. It appears, for example, as a merciless encounter between something emotionally fragile and a harsh practicality when heartfelt poems are presented on washable, laminated paper sheets. Similarly, the attitude towards the delicacy with which the meticulously hand-modeled silver reliefs are executed appear correspondingly oppressive and ruthless by presenting them on rational surfaces of office felt.
Ditte Gantriis' works particularly focus on the intimate and private relationships surrounding motherhood, as she is interested in the conditions for maintaining emotional closeness in this space separated and outside the regulatory network of authorities. With this thematic and motivational starting point, Gantriis also asks broader questions about whether it is even possible to create space for care and privacy that is free from institutional interference, and, thus, the next question she poses is whether institutional care, after all, is better than no care at all?
The exhibition is supported by the Danish Arts Foundation.
Source:
Politikens Forhal
Politikens Forhal