December 19, 2024
Ohan Breiding
Promiscuous Ghost
Ochi Projects
November 16 - December 21, 2024
Ohan Breiding
Ohan Breiding's installation, Promiscuous Ghost, is a haunting exploration of the realities of climate change. One of the focal points of the exhibition is Glacier Calving (Rhone) (all works 2024), a huge photo-mural of the Rhone Glacier located in the Swiss town of Obergoms, not far from where the artist grew up. What stands out in this quasi-life-size image is the sparseness of the ice and the detritus around what remains of thermal blankets soaking in puddles of water. People from nearby villages draped these blankets over the glacier to help insulate it from rising temperatures. When the mural is viewed in relation to a small historical black and white photograph of the same glacier from the turn of the last century (installed above the gallery door), the chilling loss of snow becomes quite obvious.
Breiding has placed two seats — fiberglass rocks with jagged edges covered by soft pads wrapped with red straps — in the center of the gallery at what would be the base of the glacier depicted in the mural. The faux rock seats face a monitor that is attached to a "weather station" (gages and a transmitter not working in the gallery, but completely functional). Looping on the screen is a thirty-two minute film: Belly of a Glacier. It begins with the birth of a cow and bubbling lava from a volcano then transitions to footage of the glacier with the harsh sound of raging water Breiding recorded on numerous trips to Switzerland. These scenes are intercut with historical and scientific footage, as well as documentation of a glacier "funeral." Through compelling and thoughtful juxtaposition, the cumulative effects of climate change on the glacier and its surroundings emerges.
A modest-sized fiberglass rock with a bronze plaque sits on the floor in the back corner of the gallery. The plaque reads: This is the first glacier to lose its status in this region. Within the next 200 years all our glaciers are expected to have melted. This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it. It is dated September 2050, the date the glacier is expected to fully disappear. Funerals for glaciers began occurring world-wide in 2019; these are ceremonies/celebrations that help people process their grief about the demise, or impending demise of glaciers. One such event is included in the film and Breiding's tribute fits within this tradition. It is at once a warning and a call to action.
Seven hand written reproductions of the text on the backs of postcards line the wall across from the large mural. Titled Souvenirs -- the original images date from 1969 - 2007 -- these works invite the viewer to imagine what is depicted on the verso. For example, Souvenir 1 has the caption "Winding Road Leading up to the Rhone Glacier, 2007" while Souvenir 7 is captioned "Aerial view of the Rhone River, Obergoms, 1969." This postcard is one of three addressed to a recipient in the United States. It is a birthday greeting celebrating the beauty of the mountains of Switzerland... A wish you were here letter connecting people across time. While most of Breiding's pieces are objective and somewhat instructive, the Souvenirs are intimate.
Using personal and historical documents, as well as current footage of the receding Rhone Glacier, Breiding has created an installation that explores issues of climate change without being didactic or preachy. This thoughtful and poetic meditation on the beauty and power of nature and the possibilities of its impending demise is not only a call to action, but a call to take a moment to appreciate that which surrounds us before it disappears.
Promiscuous Ghost
Ochi Projects
November 16 - December 21, 2024
Ohan Breiding
Ohan Breiding's installation, Promiscuous Ghost, is a haunting exploration of the realities of climate change. One of the focal points of the exhibition is Glacier Calving (Rhone) (all works 2024), a huge photo-mural of the Rhone Glacier located in the Swiss town of Obergoms, not far from where the artist grew up. What stands out in this quasi-life-size image is the sparseness of the ice and the detritus around what remains of thermal blankets soaking in puddles of water. People from nearby villages draped these blankets over the glacier to help insulate it from rising temperatures. When the mural is viewed in relation to a small historical black and white photograph of the same glacier from the turn of the last century (installed above the gallery door), the chilling loss of snow becomes quite obvious.
Breiding has placed two seats — fiberglass rocks with jagged edges covered by soft pads wrapped with red straps — in the center of the gallery at what would be the base of the glacier depicted in the mural. The faux rock seats face a monitor that is attached to a "weather station" (gages and a transmitter not working in the gallery, but completely functional). Looping on the screen is a thirty-two minute film: Belly of a Glacier. It begins with the birth of a cow and bubbling lava from a volcano then transitions to footage of the glacier with the harsh sound of raging water Breiding recorded on numerous trips to Switzerland. These scenes are intercut with historical and scientific footage, as well as documentation of a glacier "funeral." Through compelling and thoughtful juxtaposition, the cumulative effects of climate change on the glacier and its surroundings emerges.
A modest-sized fiberglass rock with a bronze plaque sits on the floor in the back corner of the gallery. The plaque reads: This is the first glacier to lose its status in this region. Within the next 200 years all our glaciers are expected to have melted. This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it. It is dated September 2050, the date the glacier is expected to fully disappear. Funerals for glaciers began occurring world-wide in 2019; these are ceremonies/celebrations that help people process their grief about the demise, or impending demise of glaciers. One such event is included in the film and Breiding's tribute fits within this tradition. It is at once a warning and a call to action.
Seven hand written reproductions of the text on the backs of postcards line the wall across from the large mural. Titled Souvenirs -- the original images date from 1969 - 2007 -- these works invite the viewer to imagine what is depicted on the verso. For example, Souvenir 1 has the caption "Winding Road Leading up to the Rhone Glacier, 2007" while Souvenir 7 is captioned "Aerial view of the Rhone River, Obergoms, 1969." This postcard is one of three addressed to a recipient in the United States. It is a birthday greeting celebrating the beauty of the mountains of Switzerland... A wish you were here letter connecting people across time. While most of Breiding's pieces are objective and somewhat instructive, the Souvenirs are intimate.
Using personal and historical documents, as well as current footage of the receding Rhone Glacier, Breiding has created an installation that explores issues of climate change without being didactic or preachy. This thoughtful and poetic meditation on the beauty and power of nature and the possibilities of its impending demise is not only a call to action, but a call to take a moment to appreciate that which surrounds us before it disappears.