SUPERNOVA/catalog

SUPERNOVA

The sculptures represented in this exhibition are a consolidation of a combination interests of the artist. In first hand we see the interest in cosmological phenomena and the relation thereof to mankind and the human body. Secondly we see the interest of the added value of sculpture to the perception of knowledge.

“The empty space in the universe is in large made up out of Helium and Hydrogen. When the galaxy was formed gravity caused helium and hydrogen to cluster and form areas of gas which evolved into galaxies. Within these areas, more concentrated clumping of Hydrogen and Helium formed stars. During the formation of a star through gravity and energy the elements Carbon, Neon, Oxygen, Oxygen, Silicon are created through a process called fusion to end with Iron.

Humans exist for 10% out of Hydrogen, 65% out of Oxygen, 18% out of Carbon, 3% out of Nitrogen, 4% out of all other elements.

When a star “dies” during a supernova the Iron core is pushed together and this causes heavier elements to be formed, such as gold, nickel, zinc, copper and all other elements from the periodic table.”

Since a large part of the human body, 96%, is made up out of 4 elements which are created in the formation of a star and iron and other metals are created during the formation and the death of a star. The artist saw a clear connection in between the human body, the universe and metals, the material she works with. The sculptures she produced are a search towards how the human body and the cosmos can be related in a single sculpture. Therefore different metals and depictions of the body play a large role in the sculptures. In it, she focussed on a collaboration between the soft organic body and the harsch look and feel of the material.

Furthermore, the artist is concerned with languages incapacity to fully encapsulate meaning. In language words are standards for the things they pretend to describe. In actuality this standard is in large made up by the individual either transmitting or receiving it. Therefore language is unable to fully transmit the meaning of the thing. She believes that the understanding of something can only be created through gathering and assembling different perspectives on that something. She believes that the separate works are different manifestation of the interests that are conveyed in it.

BIO

Elleke Hageman [NL] immerses photography and sculpture into singular pieces with emphasis on formalistic and content-based interaction between the two different entities. By assimilating forms, derived from an original, into new shapes she researches the impact of the new manifestation on its origin. This constitutes an environment in which the separate elements refer to each other. The artist sees the physical body and other natural entities as abstract shapes and uses those to formulate a narrative in her sculptures. Furthermore natural phenomena occur in the alteration process of the materials with which she works are often implemented in the final result whether as an inspirational source or an asset.