Art Haus Berlin: review and interview

Jul29

“The Artist Statement. It is a good exercise but it’s painful. It’s a brain muscle. And I have to do it all the time.”

-S. Pesot

Art: Sebastien Pesot in “It is Already Tomorrow”

Canadian artist, Sebastien Pesot turn on his own artist statement. Cutting the text up, roughing the paper, slicing a video performance to pieces then mashing it together. Against the inner turmoil and angst of this post-punk work, a short simple performance makes a statement with a smile. Pesot puts himself literally inside the artwork pulling a tension between the screen, object and his body.

“Before I was shooting video and watching the world and putting and editing all into that screen, that space. And then, I just switched the camera. And then start to shoot at my actions. Which was surprising, because I’m not as interesting as the world, I’m just a guy again. And the world has so much more than me. It caused a very big change in the way I work, to shoot at me and then to not just think inside the box or the screen. It was at the same moment/time that I started to use performance as well as video.” -S. Pesot

The white cube gallery has a tendency to highlight the artist statement as a primary point of access into the artist’s work. These words become such an important component of the work; revisited and revised through the artist’s career. Should then authors illustrate their own book covers? Some artists are ambidextrous with images and words. But at Kreuzberg Pavillon, this gallery is not square and the walls are black (not white). Is punk really dead?

Alice Stokes on art haus berlin

It is Already Tomorrow Group Show @ Kreuzberg Pavillon: Mit Borras, Sébastien Pesot and Judith Sönnicken.