Melting upwards, from Plastik Plateau's window on Thorvaldsgade, is a new semi-transparent painting on glass that echoes the physical entities of the material in its changing state, liquid to solid. Seductive, colorful layers of depth and space, alluding to something between a sticky, slimy form that slowly pours out and resists gravity, or exploding the pane in an instant. A painting that shifts must be negotiated, unable to be seen all at once.
Since Roman times, the technique of hinterglasmalerei, where one painted directly on the back of glass panes, was primarily reserved for sacred and noble subjects. The painting is built up in inverted layers, foreground, middle and then background, where the image must be predicted, calculated and cannot be seen throughout the process. The image cannot be corrected in subsequent layers, but rather scratched or scraped off and then restarted.
Muck, Mire refers to mud and filth, from a swampy, wet area, a religious expression of a kind of salvation. It describes a state of degradation, confinement or sin. The imagery of the term conveys a feeling of being trapped in a difficult situation and highlights the need for intervention. Muck, Mire explores what the ancient idea of saving and liberating means, in a time when the more we have access to see and use, the more emotionally distant it feels.
Thanks to Statens Kunstfond for making the exhibition possible.
Photos: Jacob Nielsen