Past Residents
Past Resident2014: Mondriaan Fund
Melanie Bonajo
Melanie Bonajo examines the paradoxes inherent in ideas of comfort. Through her videos, performances, photographs and installations, Bonajo examines subjects related to progress that remove from the individual a sense of belonging and looks at how technological advances and commodity-based pleasures increase feelings of alienation within the individual. Captivated by concepts of the divine, she explores the spiritual emptiness of her generation, examines peoples’ shifting relationship with nature and tries to understand existential questions by looking at our domestic situation, ideas around classification, concepts of home, gender and attitudes towards value.
Melanie Bonajo’s work has been exhibited and performed in international art institutions, such as De Appel Arts Centre, Amsterdam; Center for Contemporary Art, Warsaw; The Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; The Moscow Bienniale; National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul and PPOW Gallery, New York and her films have played in festivals such as International Documentary Filmfestival (IDFA), Amsterdam and Berlinale. In 2012 she initiated the collective Genital International which tackles subjects around feminism, participation, equality, our Earth, ‘Politics beyond Polarity’ and ‘Revolution through Relaxation.’ She wrote for several art magazines, was creative editor of Capricious magazine and curated shows such like the QQC performance festival about pop music in visual arts at the Paradiso, Amsterdam. She published several books including: Modern Life of the Soul, I Have a Room with Everything, Spheres and Furniture Bondage. In 2013 she released an album with her band Z▲Z▲Z◎Z◎ called Inua. Her work as alter ego MatrixxBotanica has been spotted in urban and rural spaces.
Events & Exhibitions
2020Solidarity: Support ISCP
May 1–May 31, 2020
Melanie Bonajo, Diversion, 2011, HD video. Courtesy of the artist.
Melanie Bonajo, Dream Station Space, 2013, Architectural sculpture, music, performance. Courtesy of the artist.
Melanie Bonajo, Matrix Botanica: Biosphere above Nations, 2013, Performance. Courtesy of the artist.
Melanie Bonajo, Genital Panik, 2012, Participatory performance. Courtesy of the artist.
Melanie Bonajo, Progress vs. Regress, 2012, Performance. Courtesy of the artist.
Residents from The Netherlands
Past Resident2014: Rod Bianco Gallery2013: Rod Bianco Gallery
Javier Barrios
Javier Barrios’ work moves in a landscape between utopia and facts, with inspirations drawn from science fiction, visions of the future, technology, architecture, science and space exploration, to mention just a few sources. The inner core of his practice relates to the great philosophical questions surrounding the origin and the evolution of mankind, and the need to find the balance between fact and fiction in this arena. He harvests information from populist medias such as journals, television, the internet, films and books, and it is from a populistic point of view that he utilizes this material in order to throw light on contemporary tendencies. Working in a multidisciplinary way, Barrios creates a dynamic constellation visualizing the complexity of the theme, while his use of materials (mylar, plexi, aluminum, light) reflects the use of material in construction work.
Javier Barrios (born 1979 San Luis Potosi) studied at the National Academy of Arts, Oslo and at the School of Visual Arts, New York. His recent solo exhibitions include Rod Bianco Gallery, Oslo; Akershus Kunstner Senter, Lillestrøm; Galerie Muelhaupt, Cologne and group exhibitions at Galleri K, Oslo; Vetsfossen Kunstlaboratorium; Norsk Skulprturbiennale and Vigeland Museum. Barrios lives and works in Oslo.
Javier Barrios, Event Horizon, 2011, Oil on mylar mounted on lightbox, 75 x 110 x 16 in. Courtesy of the artist.
Javier Barrios, Twilight is Upon Me, 2011, Installation view. Courtesy of the artist and Rod Bianco Gallery.
Javier Barrios, Twilight #3, 2011, Oil on mylar and cut out, 51 x 41 in. Courtesy of the artist.
Javier Barrios, Flaco, 2011, Baboon skeleton with varnish mounted on lightbox, 28 x 39 x 20 in. Courtesy of the artist.
Javier Barrios. Courtesy of the artist.
Past Resident2014: Danish Arts Foundation
Emilie Nilsson
Emilie Nilsson’s curatorial and editorial practice is characterized by a deep interest in the world of socially engaged art and art theory. This theme pervades all of her undertakings, whether in the context of her self-initiated exhibitions – Aktion/Auktion, 2009 and Ethnoscapes, 2012 – or when working with Creative Time on producing the participatory art projects Democracy in America and It is What it is – Conversations About Iraq. Her projects are usually characterized by a great curiosity towards the unknown and she is drawn to projects that continue to question our perception of art and challenge our understanding of the World.
Emilie Nilsson (born Copenhagen, 1983) holds an MA of Arts in Modern Culture from Copenhagen University, Denmark, as well as a BA in Culture Studies from Malmö University in Sweden. She works as a freelance editor and curator and has worked with a wide range of internationally acclaimed organizations and institutions both in New York and overseas, including Creative Time, The Rubin Museum, Printed Matter and Artspace Charlottenborg in Copenhagen.
Emilie Nilsson, Aktion/Auktion, 2009, Installation view. Courtesy of the artist.
Emilie Nilsson, Aktion/Auktion Poster, 2009. Courtesy of the artist.
Emilie Nilsson, Ethnoscapes Exhibition Catalogue, 2012. Courtesy of the artist.
Emilie Nilsson, Ethnoscapes, 2012, Installation view. Courtesy of the artist.
