Artist Michael Fliri investigates concepts such as metamorphosis, mutation and disguise: the protagonists in his work—often Fliri himself—time and again undergo a process of change or transformation. This catalogue offers an extended overview of his practice and underscores his significance on the international art scene.
In his work Michael Fliri investigates concepts such as metamorphosis, mutation, disguise and transformation. That transition can be seen as a meeting between different worlds in which diametrically opposed notions and ideas appear to communicate effortlessly with one another: conscious/unconscious, light/dark, nature/culture, content/emptiness, appearing/disappearing. Body, landscape, a thought-out theme and imaginative metaphors together form a compelling whole. Central to his work seems to be the question of what it is that determines who and what we are. What is our identity? How do we form our image of ourselves? Are we really who we think we are? In Michael Fliri's solo presentation “Replace Me As The Substitute” at De Garage, all facets of his work come together in a comprehensive show. Without wanting to expand to the proportions of a retrospective, the focus lies on a balanced and subtle dialogue, between works that at first sight perhaps look very different, but that more than ever allows the exceptional coherence in his work to come to the fore. The eponymous publication moreover offers an extended and enduring overview and underscores the international significance and the relevance of his artistic practice.
Published on the occasion of the eponymous exhibition at De Garage, Mechelen, from September 23 to November 26, 2017.
Artist Michael Fliri (born 1978 in Alto Adige, South Tyrol, Italy, lives and works in Italy and in Vienna) teaches in Innsbruck, Austria. His constant travels, often linked to the studies, residencies, performances and exhibitions he undertakes, has an unmistakable impact on his artistic trajectory. His peripatetic lifestyle is mirrored in the many disciplines in which he operates. His art exists on the thresholds between performance, sculpture, photography and video.
