Swedish artist Florence Montmare at Ivy Brown Gallery in NYC.
Illuminating the Slow Death of Love
Florence Montmare’s ILLUMINATIONS makes its anticipated premiere at Ivy Brown Gallery
Exhibition: 9/18 - 10/18
Performance: October 12 12pm-12am
Meatpacking District, NYC - On September 18th, artist and photographer Florence Montmare's Illuminations exhibition will make its world premiere at Ivy Brown Gallery. Illuminations is a multidisciplinary exhibition that engages the audience through photographs, text, and site-specific installation using open narratives that allow the viewers to have their own interpretations. Illuminations is the culmination of over ten years of work, experimentation, and process on the part of the artist. Funded in part by an Indiegogo pre-sale of some of the most compelling works of the series, there is still time in the online pre-sale to purchase prints, learn more about the project, and watch a video made by Ms. Montmare and her collaborators.
Explaining the project, Ms. Montmare says, "Illuminations started in 2002 when the relationship I was in at time was slowly falling apart. To try and save what we had, we rented a large stylish apartment in Stockholm, hoping that a change of scenery would have a positive effect. Instead, the large space amplified the emotional distance between us, and made the inevitable break even more obvious. As a way of documenting our last days together, and to force myself to stay in the bed and fight my severe insomnia, I started making one photograph every night. The camera shutter was left open for 3 to 8 hours in a darkened bedroom, and as the morning light arrived the exposure was interrupted. Illuminations is a private journal, documenting time and memory, where present meets past."
12 years have past since the project was originally conceived and the relationship disintegrated. On the 12th of October Ms. Montmare will wait for her long lost love to complete the works by waiting in bed for 12 hours in the gallery to make one last picture together. By looking deeply into and exposing her personal experiences, Ms. Montmare hopes people are able to connect to something deeper within
themselves.
“I count the minutes and hope for the best. I live in a glasshouse of expectations. Come let’s listen to the rain together. 12 is my lucky number.”
WHEN: Opening reception Thursday September 18th 6-9pm (exhibition from 9/18 - 10/18)
The artist is waiting October 12 12pm-12am, waiting for her long lost love to make the final photograph
WHERE: Ivy Brown Gallery: 675 Hudson Street, 4th fl. NYC. CONTACT: Ivy Brown; ivy@oneegg.net Twitter/Instagram: @ivybrowngallery @florencemontmar
ABOUT FLORENCE MONTMARE: Florence Montmare was born in Vienna and grew up in Stockholm, raised by a Swedish mother and Cretan father. She graduated with an MBA in Innovation and Design Management from Linnaeus University in Sweden and
worked for several years as a creative consultant in advertising, before traveling South America with her Nikon F-301. She has worked with international creative agencies, artist Sam Samore and clients such as Sony Music, Maybelline, Nivea and Harley Davidson. She currently creates content for print and online media, while lecturing at universities and showing at galleries and museums internationally.
ABOUT IVY BROWN GALLERY: Founded in 2001, the Ivy Brown Gallery represents and exhibits contemporary art of all mediums. Dedicated to supporting emerging and established artists, Ivy Brown takes her experience from the commercial arts world and brings it to the fine arts arena. Her commitment to art and the critical part it plays in our humanity is the grounding force behind the gallery.
http://ivybrowngallery.org
