The introverted human being

Written by chief editor Tom Jørgensen, at the Danish Art paper called Kunstavisen, about the exhibition “Do not disturb, don’t even think about it! “ by artist IngerliseVikne, IV
Oktober 06

During the medieval ages there was a different, firm attitude against being inwards, or introverted as it is called in psychological circles. Melancholy was a sin on the same level as Greed, prostitution and blasphemy, and was described in murals as well as Albrecht Dürer’s famous etching from 1514

Ingerlise Vikne takes up this exact human flaw with her series of fifteen paintings, titled: “Do Not Disturb (don’t even think about it)”, which is a comment on what we today would call; being oneself enough. Ingerlise Vikne is using the human body to express the self-sufficiency that for some reason, seems to be a tendency of today. There is nothing naturalistic about Ingerlise Vikne’s human figures’ twisting and turning in expressional and disproportional ways on the canvas. It has a touch of Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele, who is probably the artist’s greatest sources of inspiration. The Figures’ loose-jointed and hectic movements, combined with the almost claustrophobic room in which are situated, point towards feelings such as loneliness, impotence and existential anxiety. Feelings that contribute to further isolating these lost human souls, who are not selfish because they enjoy to be so, but simply because they can’t deal with demands of the outside world, and are therefore stalled in their own little universe.

In other words, Ingerlise Vikne is dealing with a deeply humanistic art. An art, and some paintings that seek to touch us, engage us and hold a mirror in front of us, so we become capable of dealing with the very problem. The dimensions of the painting, the claustrophobic effects they have, and the tender, almost frightening colours all have an almost physical effect on us. It becomes painful to look at some of the paintings. Something that is only enforced by the familiarity, either from ourselves or from someone close to us, of living in a bubble. As a comment on society, Ingerlise Vikne also deals out a refreshing slap in the face on the armour of self-sufficiency, the mask of inapproachability and the Oratorical effect of the Darwinist manner of being oneself enough, which apparently is the watchword of the decade.

With her paintings Ingerlise Vikne grants the human body the renaissance it needed as an artistic motif. Not in a nostalgic and recurrent manner, but by, with great empathy, questioning relevant subjects of today.

 

The Danish art magazine ”Kunstavisen”, September 2006

“The human being is very essential in Ingerlise Vikne’s rather large paintings. They are psychological paintings with focus on something that is very typical for our time: to be yourself enough.
It is a very interesting domain of paintings, granting the observer something to think about.”


The Danish Newspaper “Nordjyske”, October 2006
*****

Regarding the Exhibition “Do not disturb, don’t even think about it”
“In most of the paintings only a single character appears. This particular character appears to be rather inwards and isolated, illustrated by the posture. The bodies are skinny and bony. An additional character appears in few of the paintings, yet neither of them seems to be enjoying the company –on the contrary!
It sounds quite sad, but observe the bold composition, the organically formed lines, and the slightly dampened yet intense colours as well as the ivory surface:
It makes the paintings attractive.”