On the Shoulders of Giants
Nina Slejko Blom & Conny Blom, On the Shoulders of Giants
UGM Studio, Trg Leona Štuklja 2, Maribor
opening: Thursday, 13 November 2014, at 19:00
MEET THE ARTIST: On Thursday, 13 November, at 18:00 (an hour before the opening), you will have a chance to meet with the swedish artist Conny Blom, who will discuss his work and the work of Nina Slejko Blom.
The work of Nina Slejko Blom and Conny Blom is derived from their playful fascination with the giants of the art world – the icons of classical art, music, literature and film. With their interventions and interpretations the two artists problematize the status enjoyed by the original work of art. On the Shoulders of Giants asks questions referring to the structure and hierarchy of the world of art: what is left of George Orwell’s novel 1984 after all the negative has been removed from it? Are pauses in classical music works authorised, and what happens to the authorship of Beatles’ songs if they are reduced to entirely absurd meanings after they have been translated with Google translation tools? What is the relationship between the original and the copy of Lucio Fontana’s or Robert Ryman’s paintings? Can we expect to have the same creative impulses as Erik Satie if we go on the same diet?
The exhibition On the Shoulders of Giants is the first joint presentation of Nina Slejko Blom and Conny Blom. The authors will confront the language which has been co-created through their co-habitation, their exchange of experience and reflection, and has been developed and expressed through different media and themes. The artists share the same critical attitude towards the world of art. Nina Slejko Blom expresses it through the confrontation with the Modernist tradition and monochromatic approach, while Conny Blom plays with a number of classical conceptual works.
Nina Slejko Blom (1982, Slovenia) graduated in fine art from the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana and received her Master's Degree at the Valand School of Fine Art in Gothenburg, Sweden. Conny Blom (1974, Sweden) received his Master's Degree at the Valand School of Fine Art in Gothenburg, Sweden. He has worked as an external collaborator at the Lund University. Together they manage a contemporary art project space CAC Bukovje Landskrona where in a homely atmosphere they host discussions of contemporary art with artists and curators.
Supported by:
