Galerie Max Hetzler is pleased to present Nighthawks, a solo exhibition of new paintings by Raphaela Simon at Goethestraße 2/3, in Berlin. This is the artist’s fifth solo presentation with the gallery.
On view for the first time, the presented works testify to Simon’s interest in the relationship between physicality and the psyche. In contrast to the subtle minimalism of her early work and the simplified everyday objects which have dominated much of the artist’s oeuvre, Nighthawks suggests a new engagement with more existential themes. In these compositions, Simon paints personages and objects which are at once otherworldly and familiar, human and mechanoid. Wide-eyed and alert, these nocturnal totems embody countless contradictions.
Set against monochromatic backdrops and pushed to the front of the picture plane, the Nighthawks probe formal and symbolic boundaries. They are anonymised and 'desocialised', in Simon’s words, prompting a comparison with Hopper’s famous painting of 1942. Pale tones of grey, purple, and blue dominate, evoking an icy mood which is mirrored in the uncanny subject matter. These creatures are endowed with sculptural volume; they stand erect, solid, and monumental. Like ancient Mesopotamian votive figures, the Nighthawks seem to resist the comfort of sleep. Their eyes – which Simon paints both as white glowing orbs and deep black voids – suggest a state of eternal insomnia.
Here, the night constitutes a site of rest and potential violence. In Bett, (Bed), a figure lies muffled beneath a geometric blanket. Elsewhere, polka dots conjure the distant innocence of childhood pyjamas. In Eiswürfel (Ice cube), a severed head is frozen inside a block of ice, while a set of teeth in the aptly titled Biss (Bite) warn of potential injury. The morosely titled Besserungsanstalt (Correctional facility) depicts three figures trapped behind a steel door, suggesting the failure of humane rehabilitation.
Simon’s interest in materiality is similarly evident in this new body of work. Tubular and padded, the subjects blur the boundary between skin and fabric, between the cold solidity of ice and the soft wadding of a duvet. 'What does it mean to be too close?' Simon asks the viewer. 'If something swells up too much, it can burst', she notes. 'There is an underlying violence that becomes palpable.' In Nighthawks, Simon renegotiates the contradictions between innocence and brutality, escape and imprisonment, form and function.
Raphaela Simon (*1986, Villingen) lives and works in Berlin. Simon studied under Peter Doig at the Düsseldorf Art Academy and was part of Günther Förg’s class at the Munich Academy of Fine Arts. She has been exhibiting regularly with Galerie Max Hetzler since 2016. The artist’s work has been presented in solo and group exhibitions at the Kunsthalle Düsseldorf (2022); Bonner Kunstverein, Bonn (2022); Daimler Contemporary, Berlin (2021); Hannah Hoffman Gallery, Los Angeles (2021 and 2016); Michael Werner Gallery, London (2019); and TRAMPS and Michael Werner Gallery, New York (2017). Simon’s work will be the subject of a solo presentation at Fondazione Giuliani, Rome, from May to July 2023.
Press contact:
Galerie Max Hetzler
Honor Westmacott
honor@maxhetzler.com
Berlin: +49 30 346 497 85-0
www.facebook.com/galeriemaxhetzler
www.instagram.com/galeriemaxhetzler