All Humanlike

As social beings, humans can derive joy and inspiration from their interpersonal relations, providing them with support systems as well as bonds and encounters that enhance their well-being. But it can also be the source of pain and suffering—the site of conflict and antagonism among people. This dark side of relationships takes the central theme of this new solo exhibition by Johanna Helmuth, a theme she has been fascinated with and continuously explored in her art over the years. But not just exposing these human tendencies, she once again weaves a positive note in the seemingly gloomy and bleak depiction of social life, composing the works both as gripping images that confront harsh realities and as uplifting vignettes that evoke hope in our existence.

Here, she deals with interpersonal struggles and how it torments the individual by painting scenes of interactions between a person and dummies, in her characteristic gritty strokes and muted palette. Inanimate and synthetic, these dummies appear humanlike in form but ultimately devoid of life, thought, and emotion. These human imitations may be a figurative reference to decoy or pretense, or the lack of attributes that define our humanity, such as remorse, guilt, compassion and empathy. Through this metaphor, she expresses her words of encouragement to those in distress and perturbed by their foes. Depicting individuals that bring negativities as mere lifeless fixtures surrounding one’s life, the works tell us not to dwell or be burdened by their existence, declaring a conviction to remain steadfast and undaunted amid life’s challenges.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Ruel Caasi, curator