“Le homard amoureux” at inaugural exhibition of New Warsaw Modern Art Museum.
March 25th – June 18th 2017
The Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw opens in its new premises on the banks of the Vistula with an exhibition entitled “The Beguiling Siren is Thy Crest”. It delves into the cultural connotations of Warsaw’s symbol, and its universality in the context of creating a modern urban identity. Those visiting the newly opened pavilion can view historic materials – works of art and artefacts – as well as creations of modern artists inspired by the mythological siren. Amongst those works is “Le homard amoureux” (The lobster in love) by the Belgian Pop Artist Evelyne Axell.
Evelyne Axell’s painting is a celebration of female pleasure and desire, unbound by propriety. Axell experiments with eroticism by depicting a naked woman passionately embracing a lobster and blurring the line between human and animal. She depicts female sexuality and sensuality as an attempt to fight the patriarchal order, while the lobster – a motif often used by Surrealists of the first half of the 20th century – introduces an element of humorous perversion to the composition. The artist’s formal choice also merit attention; a wooden applique design on canvas painted with oil paints stands out from her other works, which usually utilize plastic and Plexiglas.
MUSEUM on the Vistula
Wybrzeże Kościuszkowskie 22
(Skwer Kpt. S. Skibniewskiego “Cubryny”),
Warsaw, Poland
http://www.syrena.artmuseum.pl/
