Irina Nakhova
12 SELECTED INSTALLATIONS 1994–2004
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DEPOSITION
2000
Four paintings, oil and acrylic on canvas, 183 x 117 cm each, sound (special thanks to Carmen Kordas and Manuel Wally), electronics, 12 parachute silk inflatables, electronics, fans, variable from 60 to 100 cm length, papier mâché, 130 x 130 x 150 cm
This installation is an example of recyclable history and our theatrical soap opera culture. Talking food-paintings on a wall reflect the traditional scene of the Deposition from the Cross; the sculptural part represents another classical theme: the Annunciation. In fact, it is the beginning and nearly the end of the same story. Involuntary conception (woman as a mere container for higher actions or ideas) results in the blame for all miseries that happen later. So the paintings scream: «Mother, why did you leave me?» in the vein of «Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani!» (My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?). «Deposition» has two phases: the powerless calm when nobody is in the exhibition space, and the active phase as soon as a viewer enters. The shape of the VirginMary, placed in the center of the installation, can be seen only when the fan in front of her is blowing. The active phase of the figures resembles the Virgin Mary and the angels from Jean Fouquet’sMelun Diptych «The VirginMary and Child» (approx. 1451). She looks like the winner of an American beauty contest, with big breasts and a «Slim-Fast» waist. With the fans blowing behind them, the angels are puffed up and point towards the Virgin; when the fans are off, the angels are limp and droopy.
Irina Nakhova, 2000