Rebecca Fontaine-Wolf: Flesh & the Mirror

The self-image of Rebecca Fontaine-Wolf

Kunst Haus Mitte presents the impressive works of German-British artist Rebecca Fontaine-Wolf. Under the title “Flesh & the Mirror - The Self-Portrait of Rebecca Fontaine-Wolf”, she is showing series from the last four years that stand out due to their innovative visual language and unmistakable technique.

Her works question conventional notions of gender, sexuality and identity and encourage reflection. She reveals and dismantles the representation of women in art as well as in advertising, film and the media.

All her works are self-portraits in a broader sense, as it is her body that is presented, fragmented, deformed, reflected in mirror surfaces and, as it sometimes appears, dissected. Fontaine-Wolf is a model, photographer and director at the same time. Unlike artists before her, she does not take on different personalities, but places her headless naked body in highly symbolic settings inspired by historical pictorial subjects. In doing so, she regularly plays with art-historical recognition effects that testify to her in-depth knowledge of feminist criticism of the male-dominated art canon.

Fontaine-Wolf confidently counters the male gaze's desire for appropriation with her own, explicitly female body. She does not shy away from an exuberant, baroque drama with electrifying contrasts of light, asymmetrical compositions, reflective surfaces and materials that appeal to all the senses. Ecstasy and eroticism are staged in a performative and liberating way.

With her unmasking treatment of misogynistic motifs such as the vanitas motif or the memento mori motif, she corrects the tradition of depicting the female nude, which is characterized by the white male gaze. Fontaine-Wolf takes her own experience seriously and at the same time allows for other perceptions and experiences. There is an openness in her works, which do not illustrate theses but are nevertheless political. Her work is firmly anchored in the feminist art of the 21st century.

Opening hours: Wednesday to Sunday from 12 to 18 o'clock

Runtime: Sat, 21/09/2024 to Fri, 20/12/2024

Takes place here:

• Haus Kunst Mitte