CORNELIA THOMSEN: The Collective Self

1014 Space for Ideas is pleased to present “The Collective Self,” a new exhibition of Cornelia Thomsen’s work, to be held at 1014 Space for Ideas (1014 5th Avenue, opposite the Metropolitan Museum of Art main entrance) from Monday, April 4, 2022 to Thursday, April 28, 2022.

This pathfinder event features works from Thomsen’s Stripes, Structures, and Anna series, each meditating on a distinct moment in a complex artistic, psychological, and political journey, and offers visitors an opportunity to view abstract compositions in dialogue with more recent portrait paintings.

Thomsen will also present Stripes XD, a series of unique digital and physical installations, developed in collaboration with Muzi Labs, her first venture into digital art and NFTs.

Composed of vertical lines that vary in color and width, Thomsen’s Stripes paintings are executed freehand on canvases that may seem hard-edged at a distance yet on closer viewing reveal subtle tonal gradations. Thomsen paints the lines horizontally, evoking memories of outdoor scenes, but once completed they are displayed vertically, eliminating any hint of literal representation. The finished works may even seem to confront the viewer with symbolic walls or prison bars, reflecting Thomsen’s upbringing behind the closed borders of Communist East Germany.

Structures, Thomsen’s larger drawings on paper, are complex systems of ink marks, never crossing or touching one other, seemingly chaotic yet each occupying a precise place within a cloud-like overall scheme, with the goal of drawing the eye quietly yet insistently from one area of concentration to another.

Thomsen’s most recent subject is Anna, a young woman painted in lustrous oils on copper or canvas. Vivid highlights and bravura strokes recall classical society portraiture, but Anna’s gaze—typically directed haughtily at the viewer—identifies her as a woman of the present day, self-assertive and defying our judgment.

The Stripes XD collection—a series of looped high-resolution videos that will be available as NFTs—brings new qualities of movement, three-dimensionality, texture, and rhythm to Thomsen’s original analog Stripes paintings, for the first time projecting her into the brave new world of advanced digital technology.

Notes for Editors:

The exhibition is presented by the German Consulate General, organized in collaboration with the Deutsches Haus at N.Y.U.

https://www.corneliathomsen.com/news/46-cornelia-thomsen-the-collective-self/