Helene Black: 1999 :: D' Où Viens - Tu? (Where Do You Come From?)

Europ’Art Exhibition, Palexpo, Geneva, Switzerland
Group show
14-18 April 1999
This Artwork was chosen by the Ministry of Culture of the Government of Cyprus to represent the country in the Europ’Art Exhibition.

Article published in the Europ’ Art catalogue 8th edition p76-77. Translated from the French original .
The statement of Paracelsus ‘I am different. Let this not upset you.’ forms the basis of the title of Helene Black’s artwork ‘Does This Upset You?’ However, the artist not only refers to the writings of this 15th Century Swiss natural philosopher but also concerns herself with the contemporary issue of mapping identity especially within her own European context where boundaries and identities are in a state of fluctuation, mutation and uncertainty.
In this piece, the individual’s reflection, framed by the text ‘I am different’ becomes a fleeting symbol of the universal desire to be both individual and integrated. Thus, ‘I am different’ describes both the individual and collective whilst concurrently challenging the concept of ‘identity’ as reality or truth. The reflections of the spectator are momentarily absorbed and codified within the identity of the art work.
The ‘visuals’ of the art work are to a large extent contained within the body of the construction with its large stainless steel frame forming a protective barrier. This ‘interior’ body becomes analogous to the interiority of the individual’s relationship and subjectivity between the self and the outside world.