Sofia Stevi
Lizzie & Laura
January 19, 2017–February 18, 2017The Breeder, Athens
The Breeder presents Sofia Stevi’s first solo show with the gallery, titled Lizzie & Laura.
For this new series of paintings, Sofia Stevi draws inspiration from the poem The Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti, the protagonists of which are two sisters, Lizzie and Laura, who also lend their names to the exhibition’s title. At first glance, the poem seems like a parabole for being virtuous and the consequences that follow if one deviates. However, Rossetti’s poem can be considered groundbreaking in how it portrays a woman’s existence, always in comparison to the strict morals of the Victorian era. There are no direct references, but eroticism and an almost silent admittance of female sexuality and love is evident, even between the two sisters, while no man appears in the story.
Using this poem as a starting point, Stevi presents a narrative, which revolves around woman as a presence in a society full of taboos and conventions, emphasizing on her body and the erotic and sexual aspects that have been inextricably connected to it. Inspired by Japanese calligraphy, Stevi uses ink on untreated fabric, thus complimenting the unique artistic language she has created, which comprises mainly of appropriated symbols – here mainly parts of the female anatomy, transformed into an alphabet of their own. Through their repetitive use, these shapes eventually lose their initial meaning and become abstract figures, existing outside time and space, thus transferring the viewer to a dreamscape, a parallel universe where anything can happen. Through painting, Stevi explores the possibilities of art, how it can function as a communicator of feelings and thoughts, as well as her own place in society as an artist and as a woman who, like all of us, seeks her own truth.
Also on view is a book of drawings made in preparation of the paintings as a more direct interpretation of the poem. Sofia Stevi’s interest in books comes from her studies as a bookbinder and her research in books as a vehicle of time. Similar to a walk or a film, looking or reading a book is also a rythmic act, with action, pauses, repetition.
Sofia Stevi (Athens 1982) is a graduate of Central Saint Martin’s School of Art & Design of London and lives and works in Athens. Selected shows include: The Equilibrists – Benaki Museum, Athens, organised by the New Museum, New York and the DESTE Foundation and curated by Massimiliano Gioni, Gary Carrion-Murayari and Helga Christoffersen (2016); tell me if I am too much, ALMA ZEVI Gallery – Lendi Projects, Celerina, Switzerland (2016); Cuprum (with Talisa Lallai and Marlene Starck), Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation, Nicosia, Cyprus, curated by Clarissa Tempestini (2016); Aeropagus Königin (group show), Parallel Vienna, Vienna, Austria, curated by Jelena Seng (2015); The London Project Goes North (group show), Yorkshire Sculpture Park, UK (2013); The London Art Book Fair, Whitechapel Gallery, London (2011).
