Artist: Sofia Duchovny
Exhibition title: Private Viewing
Curated by: Tomke Braun
Venue: Kunstverein Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
Date: January 19 – March 10, 2019
Photography: All images copyright and courtesy of the artist and © Kunstverein Göttingen
The Kunstverein Göttingen‘s 2019 program opens with a solo show by artist Sofia Duchovny. The title of the exhibition „Private Viewing“ – supported by the theatrically framed view into the artist‘s studio – suggests exclusivity, but is parodied by the public nature of an exhibition as such. Duchovny‘s works are shaped by the ambivalence of private and public, between that which is shown and that which should be shown, between intimacy and authenticity. The artist moves between these two poles with humor and a disarming sense of emotionality.
The exhibition combines sculptures and paintings to a kind of filmic parcours. For this, Duchovny continues her analysis of the artwork as a flexible and non-passive object, which she has been working on over the past few years. As a part of this work, she has produced a series of foldable sculptures. The resulting space-within-a-space constructions are light and translucent, but still manage to dominate the space through size and presence. Their materiality enhances the dichotomy between romantic fragility and autonomous strength. They resemble larger-than-life insects, whilst at the same time conjuring up associations with the female figure.
The predominantly pastel-colored paintings are similar to the sculptures in that round shapes also define them. Duchovny plays with naivety and thereby entangles the viewer into her image world. Her heart-shaped boxes become image carriers and use perspective to summon up spatial irritations. They are of dogs and insect legs, unmade beds and feet protruding from under covers, but also bullet holes and fences. With the help of miniatures and icons, Du-chovny develops a vocabulary for a personal, as well as universal language.
Sofia Duchovny (*1988 in Moscow) lives and works in Berlin. She finished her studies in 2014 at the Städelschule in Frankfurt am Main as master student of Monika Baer. In 2016, she participated in the Berlin Program for Artists. Her work has been exhibited at Künstlerhaus Bremen (2018), Kunstverein Hannover (2017), Between Bridges (2017) and Kunstverein Braunschweig (2017), amongst others. In 2016 she undertook a residency at HIAP in Helsinki, Finland. Her exhibition at Kunstverein Göttingen is the artist‘s first institutional solo show, on the occasion of which an artist book will be published.
Sofia Duchovny, Private Viewing, 2019, exhibition view, Kunstverein Göttingen
Sofia Duchovny, Fly With Me, 2018 (Detail), Carbon stick, metal sticks, tulle fabric, webbing, eyelets, bulb, socket, watercolor on canvas, 320 x 300 x 100 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Untitled, 2018, Carbon sticks, tulle fabric, webbing, leather, 160 x 140 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Untitled, 2018, Carbon sticks, tulle fabric, webbing, leather, 160 x 140 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Fly With Me, 2018 (Detail), Carbon stick, metal sticks, tulle fabric, webbing, eyelets, bulb, socket, watercolor on canvas, 320 x 300 x 100 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Baby Macho’s Spirit Complexx, 2018, Carbon stick, metal sticks, tulle fabric, webbing, ropes, elastic band, Ca. 200 x 200 x 300 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Private Viewing, 2019, exhibition view, Kunstverein Göttingen
Sofia Duchovny, Baby Macho’s Spirit Complexx, 2018, Carbon stick, metal sticks, tulle fabric, webbing, ropes, elastic band, Ca. 200 x 200 x 300 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Baby Macho’s Spirit Complexx, 2018, Carbon stick, metal sticks, tulle fabric, webbing, ropes, elastic band, Ca. 200 x 200 x 300 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Baby Macho’s Spirit Complexx, 2018, Carbon stick, metal sticks, tulle fabric, webbing, ropes, elastic band, Ca. 200 x 200 x 300 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Private Viewing, 2019, exhibition view, Kunstverein Göttingen
Sofia Duchovny, Private Viewing, 2019, exhibition view, Kunstverein Göttingen
Sofia Duchovny, Untitled, 2018, Metal, cables, wire, leather, bulb, socket, 100 x 50 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Private Viewing, 2019, exhibition view, Kunstverein Göttingen
Sofia Duchovny, bat 4, 2018, Carbon sticks, tulle fabric, watercolour on canvas, 150 x 90 cm
Sofia Duchovny, bat 2, 2018, Carbon sticks, tulle fabric, watercolour on canvas, 150 x 90 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Private Viewing, 2019, exhibition view, Kunstverein Göttingen
Sofia Duchovny, Private Viewing, 2019, exhibition view, Kunstverein Göttingen
Sofia Duchovny, Heart shaped box (ripped), 2018, Watercolor on canvas, 130 x 90 cm
Sofia Duchovny, Heart shaped box (stung), 2018, Watercolor on canvas, 130 x 90 cm