Artist: Zsófia Keresztes
Exhibition title: HOLYLAND
Curated by: Flóra Gadó
Venue: Labor Gallery, Budapest, Hungary
Date: November 3 – November 10, 2016
Photography: Krisztián Zana, all images copyright and courtesy of the artist and Labor Gallery
“The Wi-Fi network called Holyland has been available without a password in our kitchen for the past 8 years. It is still the only place from where we receive data and this is why our checker boarded 10m² kitchen became a sacred place within our apartment” (Zsófia Keresztes)
In Zsófia Keresztes’s recent exhibition the focus is on the fictive relics of the 21st century. The inspiration came from the relics of catacomb saints of the Roman Empire, which were imported to Germany, Austria and Switzerland in the 17-18th century, in order to replace the relics that were destroyed during the time of Reformation. Taking this cult as a starting point, Zsófia Keresztes examines the relationship with our digital and smart devices, which behavior is often described as being addictive, insistent and fetishizing. The sacred and ethereal meaning of the relics becomes parallel with today’s information culture and with our strong attachment towards virtual, intangible contents.
The work Relic shrine of Katie Cotton’s pointing finger (2015) which presents the fictive relic of Apple’s ex-PR director in a baroque style, could be seen as an antecedent. Opposite to this piece, the new works in the exhibition seem much more minimalistic and they rely less on concrete facts. The anthropomorphic forms are covered with special “hair-like” materials which resemble cables, and these objects contain different package products by Apple. The empty boxes could refer to the old relic shrines. Even though the cases and the casts made out of them lost their function, they can recall the devices related to them as well as a special kind of sensation.
Our notions of death and after-life change as well: the sky/heaven today appears as the cloud where we save our datas. Finally, the motto’s personal experience and the name of the Wi-Fi network puts the whole exhibition in an ironic context: home is, where there internet connection is. This is how the artist’s black-and-white checker boarded kitchen floor with the router becomes a returning motive throughout the exhibition and turns into a holy and sacred place.
Zsófia Keresztesn, Tenaciousness of the Martyr, 2016, styrofoam, Macbook boxes, Macbook battery, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztesn, Tenaciousness of the Martyr, 2016, styrofoam, Macbook boxes, Macbook battery, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztesn, Tenaciousness of the Martyr, 2016, styrofoam, Macbook boxes, Macbook battery, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, Surely Heaven is Kept in Incognito Mode Too, 2016, styrofoam, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, Surely Heaven is Kept in Incognito Mode Too, 2016, styrofoam, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, From a Trustworthy Source, 2016, styrofoam, iPhone boxes, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, From a Trustworthy Source, 2016, styrofoam, iPhone boxes, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, From a Trustworthy Source, 2016, styrofoam, iPhone boxes, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, From a Trustworthy Source, 2016, styrofoam, iPhone boxes, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, Blooming Router, 2016, styrofoam, expanding foam, acrylic paint, cable tie, plastic tubes, router, artificial flower
Zsófia Keresztes, Blooming Router, 2016, styrofoam, expanding foam, acrylic paint, cable tie, plastic tubes, router, artificial flower
Zsófia Keresztes, Blooming Router, 2016, styrofoam, expanding foam, acrylic paint, cable tie, plastic tubes, router, artificial flower
Zsófia Keresztes, Blooming Router, 2016, styrofoam, expanding foam, acrylic paint, cable tie, plastic tubes, router, artificial flower
Zsófia Keresztes, Smells Like 9 Pieces, 2016, styrofoam, soap, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, Smells Like 9 Pieces, 2016, styrofoam, soap, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, Empty Reliquary Circa 2015, 2016, iPad box, soap, acrylic paint, glass
Zsófia Keresztes, Empty Reliquary Circa 2015, 2016, iPad box, soap, acrylic paint, glass
Zsófia Keresztes, Empty Reliquary Circa 2015, 2016, iPad box, soap, acrylic paint, glass
Zsófia Keresztes, The Alms,2016, styrofoam, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, The Alms,2016, styrofoam, thread, acrylic paint
Zsófia Keresztes, It Wasn’t Us Who Told Lizi to Lie Down on the Cold Kitchen Floor, 2016, styrofoam, acrylic paint, router, artifical flower, Macbook box, thread
Zsófia Keresztes, It Wasn’t Us Who Told Lizi to Lie Down on the Cold Kitchen Floor, 2016, styrofoam, acrylic paint, router, artifical flower, Macbook box, thread
Zsófia Keresztes, It Wasn’t Us Who Told Lizi to Lie Down on the Cold Kitchen Floor, 2016, styrofoam, acrylic paint, router, artifical flower, Macbook box, thread