12.02.–12.04.2009
Exhibition at CaféCult #38

Helga Gasser
Catch the Light

Opening: February 11, 2008, 7 p.m.

As part of the exhibition series in CaféCult #38
Helga Gasser showed images from the 2008/09 series “Fang das Licht ” (Catch the Light).

Helga Gasser captures situations and moments in life that are actually too unpleasant or personal to be displayed. The selected motifs show the subjects’ unflattering perspectives, intimate glimpses, or embarrassing moments, aspects that nobody likes to see of themselves. But
Helga Gasser does not only draw “unflattering ” portraits of her fellow human beings, but is also ruthlessly present in her own self-portrayal. She expands this approach in the “Fang das Licht ” series around a delicate play of light and shadow in which the direct view of the subject is altered through a certain light or shadow. Nevertheless, the people’s faces can be identified and appear as recognizable characters. A single look is enough, even if it is unflattering or blurry, to perceive the many faces and facets that make up the individuality of a person as a whole.

An ironic starting point for many works of art and series are their titles, which constitute an important component of the work. Well-known song lines and titles that are forever stuck in your head like the song “Fang das Licht ” masquerade as familiarity and create a certain ease by reminding you of situations from which the images could have emerged.

Helga Gasser, born in Villach, Carinthia in 1979, lives and works in Salzburg. In 2003 she completed her studies in Graphic Arts with Prof. Herbert Stejskal at the Mozarteum in Salzburg. Since then she has participated in several exhibitions, most recently in 2008 “Ich bin so frei ” at the Galerie Gmünd, or “Junge KünstlerInnen mit der Bank Austria auf dem Weg zum Erfolg ”, at the Galerie 3, in Klagenfurt.