the first leg of a touring exhibition of Contemporary Drawing that was also shown in Amsterdam and Edinburgh
The artists Witte Wartena from the Netherlands and Euan Gray from Scotland have curated the autumn exhibition at Teckningsmuseet in Laholm. International pop art gathers Trump and Lady Gaga in Laholm Art • Popular culture icons are everywhere. We can take part in celebrities, scandals and stories in everything from film, music, television, social media – and now also in museums. Pop art is the autumn theme at the Drawing Museum. There is something pop in the air at Teckningsmuseet in Laholm as soon as you step inside. The smell of popcorn is the first thing that hits you, like in a cinema. - We thought it might be suitable for tomorrow's opening, says Frida Talik, artistic director at the museum. What's fitting about this particular snack is that it's about pop art. Popular culture in all its varieties shapes our lives in different ways on a daily basis, and this is what we want to show during this autumn's exhibition. For this, however, it is not the museum itself that has decided which artists will be displayed, but two curators have been selected for this: Euan Gray from Scotland and Witte Wartena from Holland. Together they have selected seven artists – including themselves – from Belgium, the Netherlands, Great Britain and Germany, with one of the German artists originating from Chile. - It is an accessible exhibition for everyone, says Euan. And it's fun. - You can relate to a lot, says Witte. There are several layers – among the fun there is also the dark. The idea was that they would have arrived already two years ago, but then, as you know, something stopped international travel... Super bowl and Donald Trump There are many different techniques and motifs that are mixed at the exhibition. Some images are pure series albums. Others are images from music magazines, with modern classic images such as Janet Jackson during the Super bowl 2004 and Spice girl Geri Halliwell in her British coloured dress. Social media like Tiktok is mixed with good old phone doodles. Van Gogh and Lady Gaga The artists in the exhibition have solid careers, and at the same time exhibit at, among others, the Center Pompidou in Paris and the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. This whole exhibition will also go to that city when it is finished with Laholm in January. Incidentally, Van Gogh is also featured in Pop life, in one of Euan Gray's works. Four drawings show four actors who have all played the Dutch painter. |