NANZUKA is pleased to announce German artist Tatjana Doll's second solo exhibition in Japan. Tatjana Doll was born in 1970 in Burgsteinfurt, West Germany, and graduated from the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf. In addition to solo exhibitions Camp, held at Museum Junge Kunst in Frankfurt (2010), and Toxic Chemicals, held at Wilhelm-Hack-Museum in Ludwigshafen (2010), her works have been shown widely within Germany and beyond, such as in Contemporary German Painting at Museu de Arte de São Paulo in Brazil (2011).

For the upcoming exhibition Doll will be showing twelve pieces, including nine new works, all of which will be on display for the first time. These include an array of crystalline paintings, depictions of scenes we faintly recall from somewhere and images we implicitly know. For instance, her pieces that capture memorable scenes, sometimes in closeup, from classic movies such as The Wizard of Oz or the 1956 science fiction film Forbidden Plant (CBL_Exosphere, 2013; CBL_Gryning, 2013; CBL_Refraction 1.33, 2013), and pieces that cite Dracula posters.

Doll uses different types of paint in her work, including enamel, acrylic, and oil, which she applies in layers. In doing so, the original drawing is abstracted, and it is this progression that captures Doll's interest. The process is fluctuating and random, and guides the piece to its point of arrival, the promised land. The hidden layers, painted one atop the other, evoke the many not necessarily praise-worthy histories of mankind. Alternatively, perhaps they suggest the veil of present progressive modes that mask the truth.

For example, in regards to the piece CBL_Silent Running, in which the words “Mickey Mouse” appear to be written, Doll comments: “This is a piece I created while thinking about the Mickey Mouse Protection Act, a rule that states that the use of Mickey Mouse in any other movie would still fall under the jurisdiction of Disney's copyright.” In this way, Doll's approach toward her work is more impulsive and free than logically calculated, based on an interest in the artistic expression innate within us all.

The artist will be visiting Japan for the upcoming exhibition and will be attending the reception party on 5/31 (Fri). We welcome you to join us for this special event.