The point of departure for Vanna Bowles’s exhibition is private photographs from the 1930:ies onwards, acquired for example on the Internet, which have been manipulated in various ways. Some photographs have been used as models for drawings and sculptures, others are digitally manipulated, and others again are left in their original figure. By using these various forms of expression Bowles creates diverse stories, where she wishes to challenge our preconceived views and expectations of what we see and push the boarder between the real and the fictitious.
The imagery show people in various settings, in groups or by them selves, frequently strongly connected with nature. They can be depicted outdoors in a garden or a park, while others have nature within them, like a tree growing out of a head or a waterfall in a chest. The ornaments Bowles apply to the images transforms into vegetation, as a part of patterns resembling leaves, jungle and forest.
Along side nature are animals. One particular animal has been given a special role in this exhibition, the parrot. The parrot is really the most magnificent of all birds. According to the Indians in the Amazonas the parrot is the creature closest to the gods. It is also one of the earliest domesticated pets. The parrot’s highly developed vocal cords make it able to speak like us. By its ability to mimic human, it functions as a distorting mirror, giving us the opportunity to view ourselves from a different perspective. Here several sculptures in the shapes of parrots, made out of papiér maché and drawings on paper are on display.
In connection with the exhibition a book is being published. Wild Tree, the book is the outcome of a collaboration between the writer Linn Cecile Ulvin and Bowles. Simultaneously they’ve been working with a forthcoming novel and this exhibition. The texts in the book originate from Ulvin’s current novel project. The exhibition will also present a text-based work by Ulvin. Bowles and Ulvin know each other very well and have throughout their work allowed for ideas to inform and inspire both their projects. The texts help underline the atmosphere set in the visual, expand the thematics and make visible the literary qualities of Bowle’s work.
The imagery show people in various settings, in groups or by them selves, frequently strongly connected with nature. They can be depicted outdoors in a garden or a park, while others have nature within them, like a tree growing out of a head or a waterfall in a chest. The ornaments Bowles apply to the images transforms into vegetation, as a part of patterns resembling leaves, jungle and forest.
Along side nature are animals. One particular animal has been given a special role in this exhibition, the parrot. The parrot is really the most magnificent of all birds. According to the Indians in the Amazonas the parrot is the creature closest to the gods. It is also one of the earliest domesticated pets. The parrot’s highly developed vocal cords make it able to speak like us. By its ability to mimic human, it functions as a distorting mirror, giving us the opportunity to view ourselves from a different perspective. Here several sculptures in the shapes of parrots, made out of papiér maché and drawings on paper are on display.
In connection with the exhibition a book is being published. Wild Tree, the book is the outcome of a collaboration between the writer Linn Cecile Ulvin and Bowles. Simultaneously they’ve been working with a forthcoming novel and this exhibition. The texts in the book originate from Ulvin’s current novel project. The exhibition will also present a text-based work by Ulvin. Bowles and Ulvin know each other very well and have throughout their work allowed for ideas to inform and inspire both their projects. The texts help underline the atmosphere set in the visual, expand the thematics and make visible the literary qualities of Bowle’s work.