Phosphor | Viviane Sassen
Two Jars, from the series "Heliotrope," 2017 © Viviane Sassen and Stevenson
Written by: Makenna Karas
What do you call it when the familiar is suddenly made strange? How do you describe the process of projecting your fears, desires, and dreams into one colorful pool of possibility? Dutch artist Viviane Sassen refers to it as “magical thinking.” Known for her bold use of saturated color and unique depictions of the human body, Sassen’s work has grown increasingly surreal and dreamlike in recent years. In honor of this evolution, the Maison Européenne de la Photographie is displaying over 200 diverse works from the past thirty years of her career with “Phosphor,” a sprawling exhibition that will run through February 2, 2024 in Paris.
Dior Magazine, 2021 © Viviane Sassen and Stevenson
If there is a constant theme to Sassen’s body of work, it is her unwavering devotion to honoring the power of the human, and particularly the woman’s, body. In “Dior Magazine, 2021,” a woman poses in a manner that exudes power and confidence as an array of saturated colors wash over her elongated body. The layered lights create multiple shadows from her singular form, a technique suggestive of the multiplicity of selves that any human invariably contains. On the surface, she is singular, yet her shadow is a collection of overlapping forms that invite you to see the intersecting dimensions of the human before you. She is presented as fully human by a medium that often reduces women to one dimensional objects of the male gaze.
Amanita Fulva, from the series "Of Mud and Lotus," 2017 © Viviane Sassen and Stevenson
“Amanita Fulva, 2017” continues to empower the female form while also introducing Sassen’s interest in engaging with the surreal. Underneath the colors or abstract shapes, you see a woman simply placing her hand to her chest. Yet any familiarity is made beautifully strange through paint strokes of contrasting colors and the carefully placed image of a mushroom. The longer you stare, the more your brain tries to make sense of what it is seeing. You see that the mushroom bears resemblance to a breast, offering a playful connection between the human body and the natural world. Ordinary, recognizable images are combined in a unique manner that renders each one suddenly abstract, inviting you to revel in the bizarre.
Athalia's Eye, 2022 © Viviane Sassen and Stevenson
One of her most recents works, “Athalia’s Eye, 2022,” dives even deeper into surrealism with its dreamlike combinations of nature, color, and the human form. When you are presented with it, your eye wanders the scene like a kid at a carnival, overwhelmed with the possibility of it all. Just when you think you have made out the outline of a pair of legs, or a bee pollinating a flower, you find a singular eye placed in the middle of it all, wonderfully disrupting all coherence. Themes of fertility, nature, and visibility playfully float across the shot, inviting you to approach the image like a dream, decoding abstractions. This unique indulgence in possibility and play links the entire exhibition together, creating a stunning array of otherworldly works for you to wade through like a fantasy.
