Stephanie Pflaum, See Saw
September 6 – October 6, 2007
Mike Weiss Gallery is pleased to announce See Saw, our first solo exhibition of work by Austrian artist Stephanie Pflaum. Pflaum lives and works in Vienna and Altenberg, Austria. This is her first solo exhibition in the United States.
Stephanie Pflaum’s paintings question the human need to decorate, contain and embellish the environment. Her multi-dimensional and multi-layered works are constructed with found objects that range from plastic flowers, clothing and human hair, and are adhered together with laquer, wood and paint. All of the objects in Pflaum’s constructions hold a strong sense of symbolic significance, and the ways in which these elements have been altered by the natural effects of light, air and the human touch add to the organic quality of her paintings. Pflaum’s unique sculptural scenarios appear to challenge the traditional notion of the artistic frame; in them we find a multitude of dimenions co-existing in one piece.
Through her strong interest in raw materials and metamorphisis, Pflaum is able to examine our innate desire to prettify the world. Her references to art history, philosophy and her reflections on the human condition are also prevalent throughout the physical make up of these paintings. In the end, the viewer is presented with work that reveals how the practice of beautification evolves within the process of life.
Stephanie Pflaum received her B.F.A. from the University of Applied Art in Vienna and is the 2003 recipient of the "Female Artist Award" given by the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture in Vienna, Austria.
With the support of the Austrian Cultural Forum New York
