Katarina Bosse

Katharina Bosse est devenue maman. Portrait of the artist as a Young Mother, sa dernière série exposée à la galerie Anne Barrault, proclame sa maternité avec huit autoportaits en compagnie de ses enfants. Ses photographies s'attachaient jusqu'à présent à peindre des apparences : les intérieurs chargés d'artifices, les love hotels, Las Vegas, les accoutrements loufoques, les blondes décolorées, les hommes tatoués, bref tous les signes clinquants et bizarres qui masquent la réalité. Ici, la naissance de ses deux petits fait voler en éclat son regard exercé.

Katharina passe soudain devant l'objectif et se met à nu, à la fois sculpturale et cabossée par les deux naissances successives. Complètement à poil, en sous-vêtement ou déguisée, elle se met en scène avec ses poupons, revisitant les mythes de la maternité. Elle qui photographiait surtout des intérieurs, se retrouve propulsée en pleine nature : jouant avec ses enfants, elle se vautre dans la terre telle une déesse de la fécondité. L'artiste jouit de ce double miracle d'être femme et mère, loin des clichés aseptisés d'une maternité de magazine. Avec un étonnement sincère, elle se livre, espiègle et impudique. Comme on ne se refait pas complètement, elle utilise quelques menus artifices (bottes sexy, costumes de scène) et soigne les apparences avec humour. Les enfants mêmes, parfois, n'apparaissent que comme de purs accessoires. N'ayez crainte, la femme se révèle mais l'artiste reprend le dessus.

C.M.

Katharina Bosse is now a mother ! She surprises us with her new series Portrait of the artist as a Young Mother. What a miracle to be a parent ! The artist can play with the different mother parts far away from her former work and far away from a contemporary magazine motherhood cliche.

Katharina Bosse / a Portrait of the Artist as a Young Mother / Galerie Anne Barrault, 22 rue Saint-Claude, 75003 Paris. Jusqu'au 7 mars 2009.

Lire l'interview de Katharina Bosse:

                                                                                                                 

Can you explain how your children changed your work ?
They have certainly limited the amount of uninterrupted work-time, sleep and solitude I had before. They have also made me concentrate very hard on what is my most important aim as an artist. And they have provided me with a richness of experience that, I think, has enhanced my life not only personally, but also as an artist.

Did you feel you had to go further the surface you are generally interested in ?
Yes, I feel that this series is not as much about the surface, about the costume (although there is still a part of it). Its psychological, sociological, mythical aspects run quite deep.

What does your body say about your experience ? Was it hard to decide to pose naked ?
I took the pictures the way I saw them in my mind - there was no question that nudity was going to be important. The body is so much the site in which early motherhood is experienced, the volume of it, the blood you share with the child, later the milk. I could not have expressed this through clothing. It is all in the heavy flesh, the round belly, the cesarian scar, the powerful legs.

Did you feel you had to be kind of «burlesque» yourself ?
I think that photographing the burlesque has helped me to define eroticism as subversive, to transcend categories and to  find humour in the strange dance of the (male?) gaze and the body as an imaginary object.

How did you choose your costumes and characters ? Which one do you prefer ?
I made scribbles of images that came into my mind. Then I tried to find the costumes/clothing that matched my ideas somewhat. I would turn the image around in my mind, until I would feel what was most essential. Except for the image with the witch, which definitely had to be a traditional mask, most other clothing is based on the color, or location. I don' think I have one specific image that I prefer... I have made many, but selected only six or seven to be shown on a wall, and they are all favourites.

How did your children and the rest of your family reacted to your work ?
The children are proud of the pictures, because they feel important and close to me. How will they feel later on, as teenagers? I hope they won't care too much... The rest of my family has in fact helped with some of the photos, pressing the button, taking care of the children. The work has brought me closer to my family.

Propos recueillis par C.M.

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