Radical distorted images of the self

The older she gets, the more she deals with the nakedness of her own body. She paints what she would never do herself, says the Hungarian artist Eva Beresin about her work. Her hybrid creatures, which she captures on canvas, are based on Beresin's own body and her own character, but move away from her during the painting process. They symbolize deeply hidden aspects of her person, her subconscious. With cynicism and self-irony, Beresin depicts the banalities of everyday life and at the same time the cruelties of which people are capable. In doing so, she repeatedly crosses the boundaries of shame in order to reach the inner core of humanity. The ALBERTINA Museum is dedicating a major exhibition to the artist, who has experienced a rapid rise on the art market in recent years: Eva Beresin. Thick Air runs from May 1 to September 15 in Vienna.

Eva Beresin was born in Budapest in 1955 and has lived in Vienna since 1976. Her work is strongly influenced by the life experiences of her parents, who survived the Holocaust. The grotesque and the playful are combined in her paintings, showing people in their entirety, not just their behavior within social norms. Beresin is also known for experimental painting: for a group of works created in 2019, she painted in oil directly on old fashion magazines – showing women's fears and self-confidence away from the embellished advertising image.