Sophie Von Hellermann and Brian Griffiths
No Good Man Island (Berlin Project Space)
17 Dec 2005 – 04 Mar 2006
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Vilma Gold Berlin is pleased to present the first Berlin exhibition by Sophie von Hellermann & Brian Griffiths. Entitled No Good Man Island the exhibition comprises new paintings and sculpture.
Inspired by the location of the Vilma Gold project space the artists based thier show on Daniel Defoes novel Robinson Crusoe. This much-travelled adventurer is shipwrecked and stranded on a lonely island. Helped by his pragmatic sense and experience as a salesman he manages to survive there for 28 years.
The story of Defoes novel is based on the real experiences of a sailor whose tale was published in newspapers and books at the beginning of the 18th century. Defoe stressed in the preface that his novel would not be a fiction but a factual report, written by the castaway Robinson Crusoe. To make it more believable, Defoe uses a detailed language which is similar to the style of a journalistic report.
The role of the author makes Defoes novel a part of modern literature. Robinson Crusoe is recognized as a literary and cultural icon,, like Don Quixote, Don Juan and Faust; the story of a man stuck on a deserted island has become familiar to everyone in the Western world.
Sophie von Hellermann and Brian Griffths give new life to the myth.
While Sophie von Hellermanns paintings overlap Crusoes view, Brian Griffith gives a new purpose to found pieces of old furniture. The Transformation follows a pragmatic idea but emanates also from personal addiction, aspiration and adaptation to the surrounding enviroment which characterise the situation of the isolated castaway. With their choice of materials the artists also deal with the idea of the authorship of their fiction.
Sophie von Hellermann lives and works in London. Since graduating from the Royal College of Art, London, her work was exhibited nationally and internationally. Recent exhibitions have been held at Greene Naftali, New York, Marc Foxx, Los Angeles, and Vilma Gold, London. Forthcoming exhibitions include solo presentations at Neuer Aachener Kunstverein and Chisenhale Gallery, London.
Brian Griffiths lives and works in London. Since graduating from Goldsmiths College, London, his work was presented at Camden Arts Center and Saatchi Gallery, both London, at Luisa Strina, Sao Paulo, and in Barbican Center, London. Forthcoming exhibitions will be help at Metropol Gallery, Folkstone, at Edward Mitterand, Genf, and Vilma Gold, London.
For further information or images please contact Martin Rasmussen: +44 (0)20 7729 9888 or: martin@vilmagold.com