Maslen & Mehra

National Post: May 10, 2011 Contact Exhibition with UK artists Maslen & Mehra

Globe and Mail 05.06.2011 by Kate Taylor: Critic’s picks: Ten Contact shows to see: Contact Exhibition with UK artists Maslen & Mehra

Public Installation: Mirrored / Maslen & Mehra
Downtown Halifax, in the Ferry Terminal on 6 backlit billboards

As a prominent component of the curatorial programming CONTACT annually presents public installations of photography in high profile spaces throughout Toronto. CONTACT are very pleased to announce that this public installation program is extending to five cities in Canada this year, coast to coast, from Vancouver to Halifax throughout the month of May.

Pink Hutt Lagoon Western Australia 2006 Courtesy the Artists and Art Es Collecion Madrid

Maslen & Mehra: Culture Lens Nature Mirror
Text by John K Grande

Maslen & Mehra have built up a collaborative practice as a duo that involves site intervention, the locating of mirror outline forms – human and animal – in a variety of urban, and rural spaces. Challenging our reading of the photograph as a neutral document that records an objective truth, these photo-works of mirror forms interject a human cultural dialogue in diverse environs. Highway 190 Death Valley (2008) incorporates four mirror people, three of whom look very urban as if returning or going to work, while another medic-like personage carries an object.  In Hells Gate, Death Valley (2005) we see a solitary mirror form casting a shadow on the red rock and sand landscape.  Aesthetics go feral here, for what could be a beatific wild landscape is peopled by a contradictory urban intervention. ‘What is civilized?’, this photograph demands? The artists’ intervention is an occupation of space and alters the way we read the pristine landscape. The suggestion is that we read content in nature much as we read advertising – editing it down, rendering it comprehensible, just as the Romantics once did in the early 19th century.

In their work, Maslen and Mehra have used mirror forms of soldiers, animals, birds of prey, or urban personages. The inclusion is a removal of sorts, for it transposes another reading onto the spaces Maslen and Mehra’s mirror spirit invaders inhabit as visual icons for a moment in time. The result is a mirror inversion of ghost-like forms.  A subtle critique of the culture nature interchange in contemporary society, Maslen and Mehras’ situational mirror inversions of ghost-like forms are sited in seemingly interchangeable forums. As a nature, culture exchange. These photographs challenge any objective reading of body – human or animal – and of environment.

Using a medium-format camera, Maslen & Mehra cause us to re-interpret environments as subjective spaces onto which we layer meanings, interpretations and worldviews. The Horrock’s Beach Road, Western Australia images come close to being sculptural interventions. An empty natural field of vision now has one person, and this alters our reading of the sparse tree, field and white cloud contents of this photo. The same applies to Inferno Crater, Waimangu, New Zealand (2006), where four of these mirror figures occupy a dried out, cracking clay shoreline like ghosts from an Ibsen play. Again, culture invades nature. Yet culture is nature, Maslen and Mehras’  Durst Lambda print photographs suggest.

Maslen and Mehras’ situationist photographs affirm the fragile ephemerality of our relation to nature’s energies. What was objective becomes subjective. We become aware that our reading of these photo-works is construed by our perception, memory, and cultural baggage. Maslen and Mehra remove that cultural baggage and question our precepts as to what environments, cultural stereotypes and indoctrinated worldviews are, or potentially could be. The control levers over what our potential reading of nature as capital can be, or ever was, are taken away. We come to recognize that transforming environments and the use of nature as capital are endemically linked to the theological and historical viewpoints in which we are unconsciously indoctrinated to believe. Habitat, whether in Death Valley, Ramsay Island, New Zealand, Paris, London or Berlin is a place we read through images. Those images are constructs. Like these mirror humans and environments that inhabit Maslen and Mehras’ photo interventions, culture and nature are interchangeable. The impermanence, and temporary nature of these set-ups challenge us with living and sensitive metaphors for the nature culture gap, personified in photos about life on earth.

John K. Grande has curated several editions of Earth Art at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington, Ontario, Canada. Recent books include Dialogues in Diversity; Art from Marginal to Mainstream (Pari Publishing, Italy)  Bob Verschueren, Natura Humana (Editions Mardaga, Belgium) and The Landscape Changes (Prospect/Gaspereau Press, Canada). Eco-Art, co-curated with Peter Selz is on view at the Pori Art Museum in Finland until June 2011. www.grandescritique.com

Maslen & Mehra will be featured in the exhibition, The Altered Landscape: Photographs of a Changing Environment, on view at the Nevada Museum of Art in Reno, Nevada from September 24, 2011–January 8, 2012. An accompanying 288-page, full color, deluxe publication, published by Skira Rizzoli and the Nevada Museum of Art, will survey the Museum‘s signature Altered Landscape photography collection that includes images that examine human interaction and intervention with the environment. They will also be included in the group exhibition London International curated by Edward Lucie-Smith at the KCCC Contemporary Art Center Lithuania in June. www.voidgallery.com

2005 Recycled advertising lightbox from the London Underground Wall based 131 x 190 x 16cm

MASLEN & MEHRA CV
Tim Maslen Born Perth Western Australia (UK citizen)
Education;
1996-97 MA Fine Art, Goldsmiths University of London
1987-89 BA Fine Art, Curtin University, Perth, WA

Jennifer Mehra Born London UK
Education;
1993-95 Fine Art, National Art School Sydney
1989-90 Foundation Fine Art, City Art Institute Sydney

Solo Exhibitions/Projects
2010- Maslen & Mehra, Cuadro Gallery, Dubai
2008- Because There Is Nothing On This Green Earth That Is Stronger Than, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2008- Shadow Lands, Priska C. Juschka Fine Art, New York
2008- Maslen & Mehra, MK Contemporary, Milton Keynes UK
2008- Two Worlds, Piramid Sanat, Istanbul
2007/8 Around, Maslen & Mehra / Federico Guida, First Gallery Rome
2006- Metropolis, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2006- Maslen & Mehra, Galería Sicart, Barcelona
2006- Maslen & Mehra, Lacen Galerie, Paris
2003- Phoenix, Perth International Arts Festival, holmes à court Gallery, Perth, Australia
2002- Terra Incognita, Artspace, Sydney, Australia
2001- Drift film, 291 Gallery, London
2001- Drift, Dilston Grove, London
2000- Woodland, Downing Centre (Law Courts), during Sydney Olympics, Australia
2000- Gorge, VOID, London

Selected Group Exhibitions
2010- Fictional Realities, Transformations: Canakkale Biennal Turkey National Gallery, Naval Museum, Cimenlik Castle and other venues, 70 international artists curated by Denizhan Oze
2010- Skin Deep The Drake Toronto curated by Mia Nielsen
2010- Globalised Nature Galerie Caprice Horn Berlin Edgar Martins, Maslen & Mehra, So Young Park etc
2010- Mortars At Dawn Carter London
2010- Art Dubai Galerie Caprice Horn Berlin
2009- The Space Between, Surrounds Our Desire Contemporary Art Forum Birmingham curated by Mona Casey
2009- Geumgang Nature Art Pre-Biennale South Korea
2009- Videoholica International Video Art Festival 2009, VARNA
2009- A Shot In The Dark Chateau Radvanov Czech Republic
2009- Olympic Visions Nunnery Gallery London
2009- The Space Between, Surrounds Our Desire Curated by Mona Casey Axis
2009- Art Hong Kong Galerie Caprice Horn Berlin
2009- Art Dubai Galerie Caprice Horn Berlin
2009- Palm Beach 3 Galerie Caprice Horn Berlin
2008- Lianzhou International Photography Festival, Lianzhou/Beijing, China
2008- Slick Paris, Lacen Galerie Paris
2008- Silver, Perth Institute Of Contemporary Art, Australia
2008- It’s Not Easy, Exit Art New York
2008- Peekskill Project organised by The Hudson Valley Center for Contemporary Art NY
2008- Summer Exhibition, Lacen Galerie Paris
2008- KIAF, Korea, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2008- Beijing Photo, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2008- Light and Transition, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2008- Margate Rocks 08, Festival of Contemporary Visual Art
2008- Grounded, Ellen Curlee Gallery, St Louis, USA
2008- Pulse New York, Priska Juschka Fine Art, New York
2008- Mexico Arte Contemporaneo, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2008- Mirror for the 21st Century, BECA, New Orleans
2008- Art Chicago, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2008- The Famous, the Infamous & the Really Quite Good, Decima Gallery, London
2008- Palm Beach 3, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2007- Slow Space Fast Pace, curated by Rana Öztürk, Arttrail Cork, Ireland
2007- Photo Miami, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2007- Nature Scopes, Gongju National Museum South Korea
2007- Slick, Paris, Galerie Lacen
2007- Optical Titilations, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2007- ArteBA07, Buenos Aires, Galeria Sicart Barcelona
2007- Art Cologne, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2007- Urban Space, Art and Technology Institute, Oi Futuro biannual festival, Foto Rio 2007/Wooloo Productions Rio De Janeiro & Berlin Urban Space, 7th Festival of documentary photography FOTOPUB, Slovenia
2007- Corpo Sociale, Galleria Pack, Milan, Italy
2007- Reality Bites, including Roger Ballen, Andres Serrano and others, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2007- Photo London, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2007- Art LA, Los Angeles, Galerie Caprice Horn Berlin
2007- KIAF, Korea, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2006- Photo Miami, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2006- The Stars Down to Earth, curated by Andrew Hunt, Nunnery Gallery, London
2006- 06′Vilafranca Contemporània, Galeria Sicart Vilafranca del Penedès, Spain
2006- Life and Fiction, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2006- Harlem Art Project, Hosted by Philips de Pury & Company, Saatchi & Saatchi, New York
2006- Art Moscow, Central House of Artists, Moscow, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2006- Refraction, International Month Of Photography, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin, includes Erwin Olaf, JH Engström Lukas Maximillian Hüller
2006- Photo New York, Galerie Caprice Horn/Berlin
2006- Buenos Aires Photo, Galeria Sicart Barcelona
06-07 Culture Bound, East Wing Collection No 7, Courtauld Institute, London including Thomas Struth, Shezad Dawood, Zineb Sedira, Oleg Kulik, Yinka Shonibare, David Blandy, Gavin Turk, Olga Chernysheva, Grayson Perry, Elmgreen & Dragset, Jeremy Deller
2005- About- From – For Nature, Old Police Station, Gongju, South Korea curated by Yatoo
2005- Urbanbodies, Brick Lane, London, curated by Sue Cohen
2005- Western Biennale of Art, John Natsoulas Center For The Arts California, including Gerald Heffernon, Sean Scully, Anthony Goicolea, Sean Henry, Lynn Hershman, Oleg Kulik, and others, curated by Edward Lucie-Smith
2005- Splendid curated by Angela Meyer and Sonia Bruce, Shoreditch, London
2004- Tempered Ground, Museum Of Garden History, London, curated by Danielle Arnaud and Jordan Kaplan including Anat Ben-David, David Blandy, Janice Kerbel, Mr & Mrs Ivan Morison, Simeon Nelson and others
2004- Gods Becoming Men, Frissiras Museum Athens, Greece, curated by Edward Lucie-Smith
2004- The Garden Of Earthly Delights, Walled Garden Brockwell Park, London, curated by Indra Khanna
2004- Art That Makes You Curious, Shoreditch Tabernacle Hall, London, curated by Sue Cohen
2004- The Royal Road To The Unconscious, project by Dallas Seitz, Freud Museum London and Telephone Repeater Station, North Yorkshire
2003- Waterhouse Natural History Art Prize Exhibition, South Australian Museum
2003- Mirror II Nature, Mile End Art Pavillion, London
2003- Chairman’s Choice, The Nunnery Gallery, London
2002- Chaos, Bishopsgate Goodsyard, London
2001- Five, Britain-Australia Society, Australia House, The Strand, London
2001- European Forum for Emerging Creation, Lyon, France

Selected Awards, Residencies, Projects
2010- Nomination Prix Pictet
2010- ENVIRONMENTAL ART CALENDAR: Contemporary Art In The Natural World
features fifteen projects drawn from the global archives of greenmuseum.org
2008- MASLEN & MEHRA BOOK LAUNCH, Scope London,Galerie Lacen Paris
2008- Honorable Mention, Pilsner Urquell International Photography Awards
2007- Arts Council Of England award for the production of a publication: Mirrored – Maslen & Mehra
2004- Arts Council Of England new work award
2003- The Eden Project Cornwall, 2 month residency
2002- Artspace Sydney, three-month residency/exhibition
2001- Artswa Award for residency/exhibition in Sydney
2001- The Henry Moore Foundation award for Drift project
2001- London Arts award for Drift project
1999- Recipient (Tim) Pépinières Européennes Pour Jeunes Artistes residency (Açores)

Selected Collections
Tattinger Collection Switzerland
Nevada Museum Of Art (Altered Landscape Collection)
The Frissiras Museum Athens
Nature Art Museum South Korea
The South Australian Museum
The Art Gallery of Western Australia
The University of Western Australia
The Eden Project Cornwall UK
RCI Liberty of the Seas Miami
The Holmes à Court Collection, Perth WA
Loreal Collection Paris
Lianzhou International Photography Festival China
The Kerry Stokes Collection
Piramid Sanat, Istanbul
Art Es Magazine Spain
Samsung Japan (commission)
Private Collections