Poignant Portfolio no 32: Carolina Krieger
“O Espelho do Avesso searches for the breaching into the consciousness of unity. It suggests a ‘to be’ in the world silently.”
I've been following the work of Carolina Krieger for a while now. She has a diverse range of series, from quiet to artfully quirky pieces. I'm amazed that she is a self-taught photographer; she must have been a famous artist in a past life. I had a difficult time choosing which series to show you. Krieger's newest work is quite different from this one; it's black and white, torn, degraded. I am enamored of it. I thought I would show you that, but recently I saw some of it featured elsewhere, hence decided to show you this body of work, O Espelho do Avesso (The Mirror of the Reverse), instead. Though I highly recommend that you visit her website to look at the newer work as well.
O Espelho do Avesso (The Mirror of the Reverse) is about silence and duality, and both live within the imagery of this work. There is nothing showy nor screaming, "Look at me!" here. Like an ASMR whisper, it draws you in and makes your head tingle just a little. Subdued and dark, she uses desaturated colors to achieve quietness. You almost feel like carefully tiptoeing from image to image so as not to disturb the silence. It is not work you stand and view from across space. It's subtle; you need to draw close to get the full effect. Some of the photographs are dreamlike; all are ambiguous. You are never truly sure what is happening and why. But this allows space for viewers to create a story around the images, rather than having the artist dictate one. It's elegant, well-done work. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Bravo, Carolina!
—Diana Nicholette Jeon
Please note: Carolina's native language is Portuguese. I did not correct any awkwardness in her English below as I was fearful that by doing so, I might alter the meaning of what she wanted to share about this work.
O Espelho do Avesso ( The Mirror of the Reverse )
O Espelho do Avesso, composed of 14 images, is an essay on (in)distinction which intercommunicate in an open narrative construction. It consists of a look that brings into light the dual existence of things in the world: nature and human, light and shadow, primitive and divine, beauty and ugliness.
The research for this essay was based on the extract of the book Memories of the Banana Tree (Memórias da Bananeira) by Brazilian writer and poet Isadora Krieger:
“When we saw a dog running along the sea edge and along your own edge, yes, it exists inside of us, it is at the edge that contemplation begins, it is in contemplation that the breaching begins, and the breaching, when does it end? And if I say to you that it never ends? And if I say, furthermore, that what never ends is very much like that time when we saw the dog running along the sea, when the sea was turned into soft gold, spilt all over, splashing golden here and there, when we saw Fire mingled with water, the above mingled with the below, the over-there with the right-here, when we saw ourselves with dog legs and the dog with our legs, all mixed up, when we saw the happening so immense that the longing not even existed, absurd and natural, like that.”
O Espelho do Avesso searches for the breaching into the consciousness of unity. It suggests a ‘to be’ in the world silently.
—Carolina Krieger
Artist Bio
Carolina Krieger, 1976, was born in Balneario Camboriu, SC, Brazil. Is a visual artist based in Camboriú, SC, Brazil , working primarily with photography and collage. She sees in the process of creation a possibility to apprehend more subtle realities and to dialogue with the invisible. Prizes: Prêmio Pierre Verger de Fotografia (2021), Prêmio Brasil de Fotografia (2013). Solo Exhibitions: “Onde estamos quando estamos no mundo? ” – Galeria Lote84 – Balneário Camboriú, SC, Brazil (2018) – “O Espelho do Avesso” - Lianzhou International Photo Festival - China (2013)- “O Espelho do Avesso” - Galeria Ateliê Aberto - Campinas, SP, Brazil (2012). Group Exhibitions: Constelações, intermitências e alguns rumores- Zipper Galeria- São Paulo, Brazil (2015) - Territórios Imanentes – Fauna Galeria – São Paulo, Brazil (2015) - VI Prêmio Diário Contemporâneo de Fotografia – Belém, PA, Brazil (2015) - PHotoEspaña Descubrimientos - Madrid, Spain (2014). Artist Residencies: Ateliê ENA with Eustáquio Neves - Diamantina, MG, Brazil (2014). Portfolio Reviews: Trasaltántica PHotoEspaña São Paulo, Brazil (2013), Fórum Latino-Americano de Fotografia/SP, Brazil (2016), Maratona de Edição Lombada- Maré Foto Festival (2021).
See more of her work at: https://cargocollective.com/carolinakrieger
Diana Nicholette Jeon is an award-winning artist based in Honolulu, HI, who works primarily with lens-based media. Her work has been seen both internationally and nationally in solo and group exhibitions. Jeon holds an MFA from UMBC.