Laura Lima
Laura Lima, Man=flesh/Woman=flesh—FLAT, 1997
Re-performed for Kaldor Public Art Project 27: 13 Rooms, curated by Klaus Biesenbach and Hans Ulrich Obrist, at Pier 2/3, Walsh Bay, Sydney, 11–21 April 2013
Laura Lima
born 1971 in Minas Gerais, Brazil
lives and works in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Man=flesh/Woman=flesh—FLAT, 1997
Laura Lima’s work explores the boundaries between the everyday and the absurd, fiction and dream, performance and sculpture. Her principal interest is the human body, which she considers as a medium, concept and the driving force in social relations through its gestures and behaviours. The artist never appears herself; she instructs others to present pieces she has developed, or invites the audience to actively examine her "objects".
Flesh is the basic working material in Lima’s work for 13 Rooms, Man=flesh/Woman=flesh—FLAT, 1997. Positioned within a confined architectural environment, beneath a ceiling that is a mere 45 centimetres from the ground, a person silently lies with a single lamp to light the space. The viewer must crouch or lie down to see the participant who, in this case, has some form of physical disability.
Lima’s work has been included in group shows and festivals around the world, including São Paulo Biennial, 2003 and 2007; Mercosul Biennial, Basel; Art Basel Miami and Frieze, London.