Manon de Boer
Che bella voce
26 March – 9 October 2022, Kunstmuseum
Manon de Boer works mainly in the medium of film. The perception of time and the inspiration for creative processes are central to her work, as are the conditions of the production and reception of film. People appear in de Boer’s works through their physical or sonic presence. Their gaze is directed inward, in relation to themselves. Or it is connected to others, a space, a city, or a landscape.
In these portrait-like films, de Boer plays with our accustomed hierarchies of sensory perception. The entirety of cultural production as well as the way we interact with each other are influenced by the weighting of the senses. We consume streaming services for music and films, and are familiar with radio, podcasts, as well as video, text, and voice messages. But are we also aware of the different levels of meaning of the respective media ? And what natural phenomena do we pay attention to ? Who are we when we must rely on ourselves, without access to electronic devices ? What thoughts and ideas develop out of this ?
In her work, de Boer suggests that the visual and sonic levels as well as the medium itself can also be viewed as independent narratives. Moreover, she gives a special status to the voice—not only as a means of communication, but also as a political or aesthetic bearer of meaning.
The retrospective at the Kunstmuseum St.Gallen is the artist’s first presentation in Switzerland. It offers a variety of listening and viewing experiences and also includes works from the museum’s collection.
Manon de Boer (*1966, Kodaikanal, India) lives and works in Brussels, where she currently teaches at the École de recherche graphique. Her works have regularly been shown at biennials, such as the Venice Biennale in 2007, the Berlin Biennale in 2008, the Bienal de São Paulo in 2010, and Documenta 2012 in Kassel. In recent years her work has been recognized with solo exhibitions at institutions including the Secession in Vienna in 2016, KANAL – Centre Pompidou in Brussels in 2019, and the Calouste Gulbenkian Museu in Lisbon in 2020.
Guest curator: Fabian Flückiger
Fabian Flückiger (*1987, Bern) works as an independent curator in Switzerland and Belgium. Between 2015 and 2020 he was assistant curator and curator at the Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein. He has realised exhibitions and publications on Nora Turato (2019), Steven Parrino (2020) and Miriam Laura Leonardi (2021).
the artist
Manon de Boer
*1966 in Kodaikanal, India
Lives and works in Brussels
For further information on the artist, click here.