GROUND MAGAZINE #18
ANTJE PETERS
Value
TEXT BY Lorelinde Verhees
1
Robert Morris, The Present Tense of Space, Art in America, 1970 p.29.
The American sculptor Robert Morris once bemoaned the “malevolent powers of the photograph to convert every visible aspect of the world into a static, consumable image.” 1 Morris’ remark is interesting to think about. The medium’s immediately visual, iconic fiction has not had much resistance to commercial purposes. This relationship to the marketplace has grown uncomfortably close today since the image has become increasingly exploitable. As we are facing the multitude of images that exist as a new economy in the world, it is of vital importance to think about the image at large and its distribution within the digital sphere. Art historian David Joselit argues that data becomes a tool for profit in the hands of corporations through profiling; enclosing information and making it exploitable, which is extremely well suited to globalization. In a global economy, art is profiled. To Joselit, however, art’s strength lies in its singularity. In order to retain a space for the arts within this multitude, it must be addressed on its own terrain: aesthetics, for it is an essentially aesthetic form of power. XI Illusion is a series of photographs within Peters’ growing Archive series. Archive is inspired by the mechanics of contemporary systems for searching and distribution of digital images on the internet (search engines, blogs, social media) and how they influence our perception. XI Illusion refers literally and metaphorically to the photographic medium within this increaslingly opaque and complex context. Antje Peters’ work seems to aim for the essential aesthetic, self-referential confrontation with photography, it’s fictional nature. Furthermore, it addresses our relationship to commodities and the marketplace through the image. It questions the role the image has taken up within this relationship. XI Illusion feels at once dreadful and festive. Enjoy the twist.
GROUNDMAGAZINE # 18 2013 Photography ©Antje Peters Antje Peters (1979) is born in Berlin, Germany and currently lives and works in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Her work has been exhibited at TENT, Rotterdam (2009) and MK Gallery, Berlin (2010). Recent group shows include ‘BILD Become Immersed, Look Deeper’ at Goethe Institut, Rotterdam (2012) and ‘Days of Labour, Nights of Leisure’ at Knoll Galeriá, Budapest and Knoll Galerie, Vienna (part of ‘curated by_vienna’, 2012). Peters photographed series for erotic paperback Baron Magazine (UK), Hector Magazine (UK), Blend Magazine (NL), Extra Extra Magazine (NL) and Fairy Tale Magazine (FR) by Vier5. Her new book ‘Desserts’ (2013) is published by Automatic Books (IT) and was launched at A+A Gallery, Venice. (IT).
Text @ Lorelinde Verhees Lorelinde Verhees (1983) studied at the BA Photography (2002-2006) and MFA Fine Art program at AKV St.Joost, Breda and Den Bosch (2009-2011). Upon graduation she won the Thesis Prize for Master students and was granted a scholarship from the AKV | St.Joost / Chris Brand Fund. Recent exhibitions include the solo show ‘Sculptural Reflection on Formal Scenery’ at Apice for Artists, Amsterdam (NL). Verhees is currently studying at the Mountain School of Arts in Los Angeles (US).
Chief Editor: Mieke Woestenburg
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