14 february 2023, Flor Linckens
The perception of humanness and identity in the work of Jens Kothe and MIDDERNACHT & ALEXANDER
Until 26 February, a duo exhibition with works by the German artist Jens Kothe and the Belgian-Dutch artist duo MIDDERNACHT & ALEXANDER will be on show in Barbé-Urbain in Ghent. The exhibition 'Substitute Love' is organised around the question 'how do we perceive ourselves and others?'. Kothe focuses on the physical aspect of that question and MIDDERNACHT & ALEXANDER on the perception of the self, both on a physical and psychological level.
The physical is central to Kothe's sculptural work. His textured and tactile sculptures and wall works contain a certain amount of abstraction, but unmistakably refer to organic, sensual forms — albeit isolated and (de)fragmented. Kothe's work refers to the physical at a time when we seem to pay less and less attention to that aspect of our being, in which many function as a 'brain in a jar'. For his work, the artist uses silicone, concrete, acrylic, polyurethane foam, pillows, epoxy resin, plaster, velvet, foil and fabrics. The sculptures stand alone, but when placed together they create a spatial installation. Their surfaces are sometimes matt, sometimes glossy. Their fleshy, (white) skin-like structure appears both hard and soft. As a viewer, you often think you recognise a piece of furniture or a specific body part — like a distant echo. That is no coincidence, the artist occasionally makes molds of body parts to use as the basis for his work. At the same time, the works have something sinister or otherworldly about them. That is why they represent a certain intimate quality, but also evoke a certain distance and alienation in the viewer. In all cases, they almost invite you to touch them, ever so gently. Kothe's practice also seems to be linked to biomorphic design, which may be explained by the fact that, in addition to training at the famous art academy in Düsseldorf (under Andreas Gursky), the artist also obtained a bachelor's degree in architecture at the Technical University of Dortmund.
In this exhibition, Kothe's work is combined with the work of artist duo MIDDERNACHT & ALEXANDER, which consists of the Belgian artist Sofie Middernacht and the Dutch artist Maarten Alexander. Since 2016, they have been collaborating in a practice that is situated at the intersection of spatial installation, sculpture and photography. Their work is characterised by a multitude of materials and a symbiotic balance between form and content. Central to their work is the complicated relationship between voyeurism and intimacy, but also between our digital and analog selves. This translates, for example, into the ways in which we present ourselves online, as an idealised and highly curated version of ourselves. How does that translate to the ways in which we look at ourselves and others, but also at works of art?
