Olga Balema

I think it is precisely the curves of Her Curves that initiated the links, gestural and yielding in a similar way. I am also interested in the gendering of her title ‘Her’ Curves drawing direct links to the body of a woman, ‘the desire to describe the body, both in text and space’ (Quinn Latimer, 2015), which could speak to more of ‘female corporeality and its subjectification’ (Frieze, 2015) which is not a subject I actively enlist but is hard to ignore as someone who identifies as female. 

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What I am most inspired by is described brilliantly in this quote in the article Openings by Quinn Latimer the way Olga Balema’s work presents itself ‘leaned and loosed…[a] laconic apparatus, almost ergonomic…Matte pastel or high gloss…the discrete sculptures shape and are shaped by the room. Like garments or stains…-material fragments at once body and chair and dress, all those things that might hold her -their minimalism is not predictably haunted by but hunting the human body (consider, for example, the narrative of a lonely glove scouring some surface for an arm to attend to)’ (Quinn Latimer, 2015). They are wonderfully efficient in being haptic things. Quinn’s text enlivens them in the same way their titles ‘biomorphic’ suggest a living, breathing entity. 

Lastly, I want to draw parallels to two other things - lines and colours. Steel is a common feature in Balema’s works. These steel lines, like a skeleton, hold and frame softer parts, with arm and leg-like sections that jut out to attach to walls or allow them to stand upright. They have a similar quality to mine, and I like how they are incorporated into the softer forms. Combining materials with steel is not something I have done yet, and Balema’s works could inspire me to try this out. I find her use of colour interesting too; I love how in Manifestations of our own wickedness and future idiocy, which is the most obvious example of this, that the colour is so luminous it radiates out into the space surrounding it, tinting everything, especially white walls, with its hue. I think this is an excellent way to extend something physical beyond itself by colouring it so bright that it emanates into something both tangible and intangible at the same time. Pink has this ability too but in a much quieter way. Maybe it is worth considering with other colours and could be a great way to introduce them into my works.