As part of a short residency in the city, pieces from the ongoing project ‘Taking Sides’ were presented in this group exhibition.
Continuing a series of pieces first started in London in 2013, Taking Sides aims to examine the concept of territory and the notion of adopting a stance.
Generally, lines are drawn on the ground in order to stand behind- to mark territory or express allegiance to certain ideals.
These pieces, being placed in high-traffic public spaces allow an inevitable interaction on behalf of the passers-by, with people constantly ‘taking sides’, sometimes by noticing, but mostly without being aware, by simply walking down the sidewalk.
The interventions are created in a site-specific manner, each reacting to their environment and interacting with the people using the public space, and allowing various images to be created in real time.
Creating juxtapositions between the personal and the political, Taking Sides is an observation on how sometimes sides are chosen and larger ideologies and allegiances are adopted- at times consciously, but most commonly in a hereditary and automatic way, or in a manner dictated by circumstance.
Each outdoor piece corresponds with a studio work, composed of the artist’s iconography, allowing a translation from real life observations into a more abstracted and universal representation.