Paris Giachoustidis – Paris in Wonderland
In the surrealist poem Life is but a Dream by Lewis Carroll, the protagonist finds herself in a kind of dream. More famous than the poem is the book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, in which a girl follows a white rabbit and dives into a wondrous world after entering a rabbit hole. Psychoanalysis, dream interpretation, and hallucinogenic drug-induced experiences have been read into this work. Paris Giachoustidis’ first solo exhibition at KORNFELD Galerie Berlin presents new works from a series that specifically explores dreams.
The Abduction of Paris depicts a surreal scene in which a woman is carried through the forest by a man. Inspired by The Abduction of Helen by Paris, the artist draws on Greek mythology and introduces new attributes such as a torch into the action. The abduction of Helen was the trigger for the Trojan War. Will the light of the torch bring knowledge and reveal how to prevent it?
One of the most famous motifs from Ovid’s Metamorphoses is Narcissus, the beautiful youth who rejects the love of others and falls in love with his own reflection. In The Narcissus Effect, we see an athletic Narcissus curiously feeling the other side of the reflection. The tanned blond is alone in the image. With today’s viewing habits, one might almost think he is scrolling on a screen with his index finger. We do not know what he sees in the reflection; we can only guess.
Giachoustidis’ paintings are rendered in intense colours and are full of (homo)erotic allusions. Some are divided into two parts by a horizontal or vertical line, creating two halves of the image. They depict people lost alone in a dream or (queer) couples engaged in sexual acts. Reflections of unfulfilled longings, secret dreams, or sexual fantasies are hinted at. Many clues can be recognised, but Giachoustidis does not make it easy for the viewer. The nudes remain mysterious and enraptured. Image motifs from advertising, pornographic films, and fairy tales are combined and linked to form a new story. Aesthetically, the artist employs elements of kitsch, plays with painterly styles, and winks at us in an ironic and subversive way. We are seduced into voyeurism.
In one painting, a young man—perhaps sitting on the moon—gazes dreamily at a blue sphere with green brushstrokes reminiscent of our home planet Earth. He is wearing headphones and seems to be dreaming himself into another world through music. Perhaps a self-portrait? Not unlikely, as the exhibition title Paris in Wonderland refers to the artist himself in a wondrous yet fascinating world.
Paris Giachoustidis (born 1990 in Serres, Greece) holds a Master’s degree in Art from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, and the Weißensee Academy of Art in Berlin, Germany. In his artistic practice, he translates historical and contemporary motifs into realistic drawings and paintings.
