MY HAPPY PLACE
2024
SOLO EXHIBITION
INSTALLATION, SOUND & OBJECT
EXHIBITION TEXT
For her solo exhibition "My Happy Place," Julie Legouez transforms the Galerie Kollaboratib into a minimally furnished apartment. The two exhibition rooms are equipped with carpet, curtains, lamps, and some furniture, promising a semblance of a family idyll. The artist acquired the prototype furnishings from IKEA. The neutral greige, a combination of gray and beige, signifies the mundane averageness of the inhabitants. From afar, a small sign reading "My Happy Place" propagates cozy homeliness. The readymade, an object available in retail, questions the concept of home as a place of comfort where one can relax. But how safe is the home really?
In large letters mounted on the wall, the MALM bed frame declares, "Safety is just a word." Its dimensions (180 x 200 cm) correspond to the classic double bed. Just as one can find a product from the Swedish furniture conglomerate's range in every apartment, domestic violence can also affect anyone. It is as much a part of the societal norm as KALLAX or BILLY – and is by no means dependent on social, ethnic, or financial status.
Using photo transfer, Legouez printed stock photos of heterosexual couples on IKEA bedding. Some appear happily united, while others are evidently distant. Like large wall screens, the works alternately display sweet sentiments ("Home sweet home") and bitter truths ("There is no safe space"). Through their three-dimensionality, the images attain object status, confronting viewers vividly and forcefully entering their consciousness. The distorted typography in the characteristic colors of blue and yellow alludes to the distorted perception many individuals have regarding domestic violence.
The downward spiral of toxic relationships can be vividly experienced through the three VICKLEBY floor lamps. It begins with manipulative declarations of love, known as love bombing, expressed through promises like "It’s you and me forever." On the next lamp, manipulative and destructive words are written ("If you really loved me, you would do it" / "You are trash"). The final lampshade presents the flimsy excuses of the fictional perpetrator ("I did it ‘cause I love you"). Circulating around the objects induces a slight disorientation, illustrating the confusion experienced during emotional abuse. With humor and irony, Julie Legouez questions aesthetic and relationship concepts alike. Through the exhibition, she locates the phenomenon of domestic violence where it truly occurs: in the heart of society.
Text: Julia Meyer-Brehm
MY HAPPY PLACE
GALERIE KOLLABORATIV
BERLIN, 2024
PHOTOGRAPHY
JULIE LEGOUEZ
SAFTETY IS JUST A WORD
2024Installation consisting of BERGPALM bedding, photo transfer, acrylic on canvas, MALM bed, HEMNES side tables, LAMPAN table lamps, STOENSE short pile rug, HILJA curtain rod, CD player, cuddle rock CDs
size variable
THE DOWNWARD SPIRAL OF EMOTIONAL ABUSE
IN A RELATIONSHIP
2024VICKLEBY FLOOR LAMP, ACRYLIC
EACH 136 X 33 X 33 CM
FAVOURITE PLACE
2024BERGPALM BEDDING, PHOTO TRANSFER, ACRYLIC ON CANVAS
80 X 80 X 6,5 CM
HOME SWEET HOME
2024BERGPALM BEDDING, PHOTO TRANSFER, ACRYLIC ON CANVAS
EACH 40 X 80 X 6,5 CM
MY HAPPY PLACE
2024KÄNGSLEBODA WALL DECORATION
10 X 30 CM
THERE IS NO SAFE SPACE
2024BERGPALM BEDDING, PHOTO TRANSFER, ACRYLIC ON CANVAS
80 X 80 X 6,5 CM
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Imprint
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