We belong to you, you do not belong to us
xCurated by Erika Lynne Hanson
Artists: Marthe Elise Stramrud, Matthew Jensen, Christopher K. Ho, Michelle Blade, and Sasha Krieger.
October 8-November 19, 2012
In Robin Kelsey’s essay Landscape as Not Belonging, he offers the following proposed definition of Landscape: “A fantasy of not belonging to the totality of life of a terrestrial expanse, traditionally taking the form of: You belong to us, we do not belong to you.” He goes on further to articulate the phenomena of that which is called Landscape is always accompanied by a sense of distance — it is an unattainable space never reached by the viewer, but rather only a view to be taken in.
The question is, how does one respond to the dilemma of distance, or sense of not belonging. How would one address Landscape in a way that offers a relationship between the viewer and the view? The artists included in this exhibition all employ a level of personification to the subject of landscape. The evocation of human sensibility is achieved by treating the subject(s) as equals, as a fellow being. The online exhibition We Belong to You, You do not Belong to Us is comprised of perspectives ranging from the intimate to the expansive, creating engaging narratives and allowing a space for the construction of conversation.
Marthe Elise Stramrud takes a highly specific route in highlighting the personality of an object through the human lens. In Planting Portraits, Stramrud utilizes the language of portraiture to capture the essence of a houseplant, which she has equated with a personal friend. The evocation of an object’s personality and quest for possible relationships is prevalent in Stramrud’s practice.
In Hanami, Closed to the Public, Matthew Jensen documents the blooming of the cherry trees on a closed Governors Island. In relation to their manicured counterparts in New York’s better kept parks, Governors Island’s cherry trees have grown instinctually, in ways that the trees’ personality exists uniquely from the pruned and trimmed decorative trees. Through the photographs, Jenson captures these traits, offering a space for them to reside.
Narrative is one of the strongest forces we encounter when viewing work, whether it is explicit or implied. In Christopher K. Ho’s Lesbian Mountains in Love, we find two lovers separated by tectonic movement. Their yearning to be reunited is illustrated through phrases excerpted from the novelist Nicholas Sparks— known for his tear-jerking tragic romances. Through the framework Ho provides, the monolithic mountains become characters caught in the melodrama we have seen on screen before, here now with a new set of characters.
In her paintings, 366 Days of the Apocalypse, Michelle Blade utilizes an implied narrative to intertwine characters, which range from human figures, an antique vase, to celestial bodies, and domestic plants. Due to the large number of paintings and scenes in this series; relationships and stories unfold, changing and reconstructing depending on the viewer’s navigation of the space that exists slightly beyond the concrete.
Sasha Krieger’s Soliloquy takes the most expansive view in regards to the potential of the construction of landscape as character. Through a montage of excerpts from wilderness films, we come to view the landscape as a whole as the main character, receiving the calls from the human actors. The questions of isolation and separation that arise in all of the work in We Belong to You, You do not Belong to Us are most clearly on display in Soliloquy.
If we return to the Kelsey’s statement that proposes Landscape is “the fantasy of not belonging,” the work in We Belong to You, You do not Belong to Us does not refute this statement but proposes possible bridges —through narrative and personification— for the entrance into a new space where the view and the viewer can find common space.
Erika Lynne Hanson’s practice holds the act of weaving at its core, yet takes the shape of installations that emphasize the relationships of objects. Hanson received a MFA from California College of the Arts, and holds a BFA in Fiber from The Kansas City Art Institute. Her work has been exhibited in Los Angeles, Kansas City, San Francisco, Chicago and Minneapolis. Currently Hanson is the CO-Founder/Facilitator of 1522 Saint Louis, an experimental project space in Kansas City and is a Lecturer at the Kansas City Art Institute.
