No stranger to controversy, Bjarne Melgaard has ‘no clue’ how London audiences will react to his latest exhibition at Thaddaeus Ropac – and he’s both ‘excited and nervous’ about it.
‘Of course I care about the reception to the work – particularly because these 14 paintings are some of my most introspective yet,’ he says. ‘The works are about personal archetypes. Oh, and the embrace of male sexuality, of course.’ That much assaults the senses on entering the gallery. Covered in phallic references, and scrawlings akin to poetry, the works feel like a glorious, homoerotic outcry.
If that wasn’t enough, they also comment, philosophically, quietly, ‘on the passing of time’. He first started painting the large, 80 x 180 cm canvases while in New York a year ago. He had lived there for a decade, and had become disillusioned with what he calls an ‘inward-looking, self-reflective art scene’. It was time to see ‘what else was out there’, so he moved back home to Oslo, where the scene is ‘smaller, quieter and less tiring’.
Untitled, 2017-18
The paintings went with him. He finished them in another time zone, six months later, layering paint upon paint; writing upon figure; meaning upon meaning. The result is weirdly, wonderfully Melgaard. Think penises erupting from foreheads, giant purple crying eyes, stick figures engaging in fellatio orgies, rendered in two stylistically different (yet both uncompromisingly ‘Melgaard’) hands.
The strangeness doesn’t stop there – for more, look to Ropac’s Instagram. In an innovative digital project pioneered by the gallery’s senior global director Julia Peyton-Jones – called ‘Life Killed my Chihuahua’ – Melgaard has taken over the gallery’s Instagram account for the duration of the exhibition. The feed promises to grant us a unique insight into Melgaard’s artistic practice and the loneliness of being an artist, chronicling Oslo’s contemporary counterculture. Prominent creatives from the city’s thriving underground scene will be showcased, including Admir Batlak, Victoria Duffee, and Silicone Works.
The two sections of the exhibition (though separated by the virtual and physical realms) are connected by their ‘approach to time’, says Melgaard. ‘The Instagram takeover is a little like a time capsule, documenting art. The paintings work similarly. They incorporate of a change in stylistic approach that embodies both the effects and results of time passing.’
Some of the works feel joyful, others oppressive. All of them are a unique documentation of the artist’s highly original creative process, and we look forward to seeing how the world of Instagram reacts.
Untitled, 2017-18
Installation view of Bjarne Melgaard’s ‘Bodyparty (Substance Paintings)’ at Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, London
Untitled, 2017-18, by Bjarne Melgaard. Courtesy of Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac
INFORMATION
‘Bodyparty (Substance Paintings)’ and ‘Life Killed my Chiwawa’ continue until 31 March. For more information, visit the Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac website
ADDRESS
Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac
Ely House
37 Dover Street
London W1S 4NJ
-
Audi launches AUDI, a China-only sub-brand, with a handsome new EV conceptThe AUDI E previews a new range of China-specific electric vehicles from the German carmaker’s new local sub-brand
-
Inside Izza Marrakech: A new riad where art and bohemian luxury meetHonouring the late Bill Willis’ hedonistic style, Izza Marrakech fuses traditional Moroccan craftsmanship with the best of contemporary art
-
Clocking on: the bedside analogue timepieces that won’t alarm your aestheticWe track down the only tick-tocks that matter, nine traditional alarm clocks that tell the time with minimum fuss and maximum visual impact
-
Meet Kenia Almaraz Murillo, the artist rethinking weavingKenia Almaraz Murillo draws on the new and the traditional in her exhibition 'Andean Cosmovision' at London's Waddington Custot
-
Inside Jack Whitten’s contribution to American contemporary artAs Jack Whitten exhibition ‘Speedchaser’ opens at Hauser & Wirth, London, and before a major retrospective at MoMA opens next year, we explore the American artist's impact
-
Doc'n Roll Film Festival makes its loud return to the UKThe 11th edition of the Doc'n Roll Film Festival celebrates music, culture and cinema from around the world
-
Preview the Jameel Prize exhibition, coming to London's V&A, with a focus on moving image and digital mediaThe winner of the V&A and Art Jameel’s seventh international award for contemporary art and design inspired by Islamic tradition will be showcased alongside shortlisted artists
-
Genesis Belanger is seduced by the real and the fake in LondonSculptor Genesis Belanger’s solo show, ‘In the Right Conditions We Are Indistinguishable’, is open at Pace, London
-
Francis Bacon at the National Portrait Gallery is an emotional tour de force‘Francis Bacon: Human Presence’ at the National Portrait Gallery in London puts the spotlight on Bacon's portraiture
-
Frieze Sculpture takes over Regent’s ParkTwenty-two international artists turn the English gardens into a dream-like landscape and remind us of our inextricable connection to the natural world
-
Meet Oluwole Omofemi and Bayo Akande, the founders creating a new art communityOluwole Omofemi and Bayo Akande, are behind Piece Unique, an artist agency that guides and future-proofs emerging artists’ careers
