Dualistisches Selbstbildnis mit dem sozialen Ich 1983

Editor: Here we have Siegfried Zademack’s 1983 mixed-media piece, “Dualistisches Selbstbildnis mit dem sozialen Ich,” or "Dualistic Self-Portrait with the Social Self." It's a striking image – the way it mixes the classical Pietà composition with contemporary elements like headphones is quite unsettling. What strikes you most about it? Curator: Well, the blatant appropriation, of course. The composition immediately recalls the Pietà, but Zademack throws in these modern signifiers – the headphones, the wires almost like veins – creating a deliberately jarring effect. He’s forcing us to consider how religious and artistic traditions are repackaged and consumed in our contemporary society. Do you see the wooden mannequin? Editor: Yes, it seems so out of place. Almost…crude. Curator: Exactly! The mannequin functions as a symbol of the artist's, perhaps our own, perceived artificiality, as puppets to societal expectations. It is fascinating to see the artist using visual short-cuts to discuss this idea in a painting referencing perhaps the most widely known artwork in Europe. How does that knowledge shape your perception? Editor: It adds another layer of critique, a questioning of authenticity within even the most revered narratives. The art world and museums uphold many traditions and canonical understandings of artistic worthiness. Curator: Precisely. The museum itself plays a role, doesn't it? It is giving space to something like this and legitimizing that dialogue in a social setting. So, is it just a shocking statement, or is there more at work? Editor: Perhaps it is holding up a mirror to the ways we dilute even the most solemn art with personal context and modern tools and mediums, questioning both the consumption and creation of images and idols? I guess the layers in this "self-portrait" make you reflect a lot about identity itself, whether it's individual or institutional. Curator: Precisely; it challenges our very definition of self. Zademack uses shock to make his commentary on contemporary art culture and, for me, to think about the art world more broadly. Editor: I'll never look at the Pietà the same way again. Thank you for sharing that with me.