Femmy Otten, 'And Life Is Over There', 2017

Femmy Otten, 'And Life Is Over There', 2017
Location: Kalvermarkt (rear of City Hall)
Interactive Dance Installation at the Sculpture during Museum Night The Hague on October 21 >> read more
Unveiling: Saturday, October 21, 2017, 5:15 PM

On Saturday, October 21, 2017, the new sculpture And Life Is Over There by Femmy Otten was added to De Beeldengalerij in the center of The Hague. This is her first bronze sculpture in a public space. In this totem-like work, the male and female merge, bringing together various sculptural cultures. It stands as a statement for freedom of thought in all its tranquility and vulnerability. >> Read the text written by Suzanne Sanders for the unveiling here.

Femmy Otten's work contains references to Greek, Egyptian, medieval, and Renaissance art. In her magical universe, this often results in mysterious, hybrid beings with elements of human, divine, and animal forms. Although her work often has an autobiographical basis, her sculptures express a classical, universal value.

Her new sculpture references the nude from classical Greek sculpture and represents both male and female. For Otten, this is the most ideal state of being: "The Greek god Hermaphroditus literally merges with his beloved. Since I started drawing, genders have seamlessly transitioned into each other in my work. This feels natural to me; sometimes I identify with one and sometimes with the other. It actually feels stranger to separate men and women— we merge so deeply and live so intermingled. I also have a deep yearning to merge."

In its nudity and duality, And Life Is Over There is also about daring to exist and being allowed to be different. The artist aims to generate a freedom of thought. It’s not so much about transgender identity but the idea that everything can exist, even if it’s different. That being exposed is something disarming and natural, that different genders and cultures can coexist, and that in this completeness, there is also great tenderness. Otten: "In the sculpture, I sought a way of standing that had to be completely natural. No shame but also no explicit pride—that is very important to me."

The title of the sculpture, And Life Is Over There, is a line from the love poem I Cannot Live With You by American poet Emily Dickinson (1830-1886). Otten often refers to Dickinson’s poetry in her titles, recognizing the feelings of loneliness, longing, disappointment, and the need for liberation.

Femmy Otten (Amsterdam, 1981) lives and works in The Hague. After attending academies in The Hague and Ghent, she was a resident at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam. In 2013, she won the Volkskrant Visual Arts Prize and, a year later, was one of three artists who created the official portrait of King Willem-Alexander. Her work has been exhibited in various shows, including at Galerie Fons Welters, Amsterdam, Stroom Den Haag (2012), the 14th Istanbul Biennial (2015), Stedelijk Museum Schiedam (2016), and more recently in a solo show at Ketelfactory in Schiedam (2017).
www.femmyotten.nl

De Beeldengalerij
De Beeldengalerij in The Hague was conceived and designed by P. Struycken. Its permanent nature and annual new commissions make it a unique form of public art, showcasing a cross-section of Dutch sculpture. The curator of De Beeldengalerij is André Kruysen, and Vincent de Boer is the project leader from Stroom, serving as advisor and coordinator for public art.

PRESS
Beelden Magazine, December 2017
Villa La Repubblica, December 10, 2017
Den Haag Centraal, November 16, 2017
de Volkskrant (column), November 11, 2017
de Volkskrant, November 9, 2017
Den Haag FM (Kunstlicht), October 22, 2017
(podcast interview: item starts at 24:18 min.)
De Telegraaf, October 19, 2017
Den Haag FM, October 19, 2017

Femmy Otten: 'And Life Is Over There' from Stroom Den Haag on Vimeo.