At the Smart Museum, Chicago 2012 Artist Interviews MELLA JAARSMA SMART: Describe your path as an artist and sources of inspiration for your work, either in or beyond the context of art. MJ: I have been living and working as an artist in Java, Indonesia since 1984. By choosing to live within a totally …
continue readingBody, Covers If there was something essential that we could associate with Mella Jaarsma’s last two decades of work, that would certainly be the human body. This is inclusive of her work ‘Pralina-Fire Altar’, which she made for the people of Munduk village in Ubud, Bali in 1993, up until her most recent work, ‘Animals Have No …
continue readingMella Jaarsma reveals her ongoing exploration of social identities through four elaborately constructed costumes in ‘Animals Have No Religion’ modeled live during the opening of Absence. Her silent but visually rich sentinels lure and hypnotize viewers to interrogate methods of reassurance encouraged by religion and ritual. Through a characteristically complex system of objects, material and meaning she activates …
continue readingA few years ago I wrote ‘Taking Cover’, an essay tracing the development of Mella Jaarsma’s work, which highlighted the transformation of her costume installations from their shroud-like origin to structural forms that evoke the notion of temporary shelters and portable homes. The essay discussed her earlier work’s corporeal and performative quality, which adopted the notion …
continue readingFrom the many characters and subject-matter which have emerged through Mella Jaarsma’s work process, one which stands out prominently is the intent to practice art as an entry point into the discourse on cultural identity. Not without a reason, Mella pioneered this characteristic model of her work upon witnessing, observing and becoming involved in various …
continue reading“We wear our second skins every day” Mella Jaarsma [artist statement,1999] Can humans choose who their parents will be? Is it possible that a person could determine what their parents look like, so that he/she could choose their body shape and the color of their skin and hair before they were born? I pose these questions …
continue reading