"Wild Exaggeration..."

I found a great article on an exhibition that used grotesque.  "Wild Exaggeration" was a group show that exhibited works by Israeli and international artists.

 "The common denominator underlying most of the works featured in this exhibition is a concern with the grotesque body - an exaggerated, distorted and ridiculous body that exceeds its own limits, and whose different parts are incompatible with one another. At times it may take the form of a hybrid body composed of animals, objects and plants, while in other instances it appears as an exaggerated and distorted human body"  

See more at: http://www.artiscontemporary.org/agenda_detail.php?id=360#sthash.12WvcS7C.dpuf

I also researched where the exhibit was and who they showed in the exhibition.  Here is another link:

http://www.hms.org.il/Museum/Templates/Showpage.asp?DBID=1&LNGID=1&TMID=841&FID=1521&PID=3434

If you look through the images and artists, the grotesque theme is obvious but different at the same time.  There is a wide range of creepiness, humor, satire, ridicule, and confusion.

The first thing I thought when I read this article was dammit, I wish I found this article when I was doing my research for my paper.  Second, I agree with the description of grotesque where it is about chaos and over stepping boundaries.  Artists use their creativity as an outlet to question everyday life standards.  For me, the grotesque allows me to be messy and confrontational things I am hesitant to be in other parts of my life.

Some of the artists I liked were:

Shira Zelwer

Peter Jacob Maltz

Adi Nachshon

Heidi Stern

Anan Tzuckerman

THE GROTESQUE CERAMIC ART OF MARIA RUBINKE

These ceramics figures/figurines are terrifying and cute in a twisted way.  I like how she contrasts the white of, I'm guessing, porcelain combined with the deep crimson.  I haven't been able to find more information on the content of her work, just that she combines child-like innocence with grotesque elements.  Here is a link and a sneak peek of her work.

http://mashkulture.net/2013/04/30/the-grotesque-ceramic-art-of-maria-rubinke

 

The Mutter Museum

I came upon this museum after speaking with a fellow classmate.  It is a medical history museum that is located in Philadelphia.  It displays preserved collections of anatomical specimens, models, and medical instruments in a 19th century "cabinet museum" setting.  What the site doesn't advertise is that many of the items in the museum were required illegally or mysteriously.  

http://muttermuseum.org/