My Very Gestures

Edited by Hemma Schmutz, Caroline Schneider
Contributions by Sebastian Cichocki, Dominic Eichler, Ingo Niermann
Conversation with Tanja Widmann

Antje Majewski became best known through her series of photorealistic, figurative paintings, which grapple with existential questions like friendship, love, masquerade, and death. Her topics also revolve around the psychology of individuals in relation to society, history, and social norms. This comprehensive catalogue traces the many stages of her work, including paintings, photographs, videos, film, installation, and dance theatre.

The art critic Dominic Eichler highlights the most important thematic threads in Majewski’s oeuvre and shows “that in terms of thinking about the fantasy figures, performance, roles and costumes …, the theoretical backdrop is informed by a progressive form of feminism. In particular, Judith Butler’s thesis about the importance of performance and performativity in the construction of gender should be taken into account.” The author Ingo Niermann claims that “whether (she) paints people in their everyday appearance or a staged one, she subordinates herself. Whatever can be seen stays with the people. They are the actual images whose real presentation is only a fleeting one.” Curator Sebastian Cichocki contributes a fierce foray into the supernatural world of a psychic, while Majewski’s conversation with art historian Tanja Widmann reveals some of the personal and philosophical concerns underlying her practice.

Published on the occasion of Majewski’s same-titled exhibition at the Salzburger Kunstverein, September 25 – November 30, 2008.