Interview /Exhibition / Malta June - October 2021 MALTA
EILEEN FSADNI
LIGHT IS TIME THINKING ABOUT ITSELF Interview with Antje Liemann
T
he early stages of the global pandemic saw streets empty of people. As countries went into varying degrees of lockdowns – which aimed to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus – people were forced to seek shelter indoors. While our mortality as a human race was brought to the forefront, a little spark of light emerged, as reports of nature returning to abandoned cities were shared. We witnessed a collective enthusiasm – even from audiences who typically neglect the environment.
evening classes to pursue her passion. She eventually decided to take a risk, describing how, “in 2002, I quit my job and decided to study art in Dresden”. “Dresden,” explains Liemann, “is home of the Romantics”. It is here where Caspar David Friedrich captured her attention. He moved to the German
German artist, Antje Liemann, took inspiration from the re-emergence of nature observed during the initial weeks of quarantine. Without humans, nature took .hold. Her exhibition, on show at MUZA, Light Is Time Thinking About Itself, curated by Margerita Pulé, creates an imagined world where humans cease to exist. She questions what nature would look like in our absence. The title of the exhibition is a quote drawn from the poem, Sight and Touch, by Mexican writer, Octavio Paz. I met with Liemann in her Birgu studio, a communal space shared with other artists and creatives. It is here where Margerita and herself met, connecting over their shared interest in the environment. She settled in Malta three years ago – seeking a place in the sun – where she is now a full-time artist. Her background is in economics, favouring a more traditional route to the start of her professional life. She tells me, “I worked in the field for 7 years”. Nevertheless, Liemann persevered with her artistic ambitions and attended
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Photos by Elisa Von Brockdorff
city at the end of the 18th century and his work is still found in several museums. Friedrich is best known for his captivating views of natural landscapes. His work is united by the theme that humans have little control over nature. Liemann says, “he is painting light, nature and the relationship of humans with nature”.
Liemann’s exhibition pulls from the Romantic tradition and presents these concepts within a 21st century context. She firmly places the climate crisis at the forefront, imagining what could happen when human-impact is removed from the natural world. Our presence is only hinted at through ruins, such as Mnjadra, in her paintings. The ruin is overshadowed by largerthan-life orchids in the foreground of the painting, representing the dominance of nature over humankind. The work is complemented by a sound installation produced in collaboration with Letta Shtohryn, who recorded the prehistoric stones using a contact microphone. Although the message of Liemann’s work is integral to the exhibition, she says that, “for me, painting is like making a sound”. When she is producing work, she forgets form, for a moment, and analyses how one colour communicates with another, saying, “the painting as a whole is like an orchestra”. Found objects displayed on a central table, recalling the concept of a wun-
