Minda Andrén: Exploring the Self in an Overwhelming World of Images
Most people don't think about how deeply images affect us. We scroll through hundreds of them daily, often without a second thought.
But Minda Andrén's work forces us to pause and consider the implications.
Born in 1990 in Sweden and now working in Vienna, Andrén dives into the relationship between the human body, identity, and the overwhelming flood of images that define our era.
Minda Andrén is part of our preview series about the ZONE1 at the Vienna Contemporary 2024, Curated by Bruno Mokross.
With the support of her Gallery Zeller van Almsick we create an artist portrait about her work, vision and her marks as an emerging artist in contemporary art.
Bodies, Identity, and Technology
At the core of Andrén's work is an exploration of the body—how it relates to its surroundings, how it's represented, and how it exists in a world saturated with images.
Her paintings are not just visual depictions but a narrative exploration of the self. She questions how technology and environmental changes shape our perception of who we are.
Her work touches on the intimate and the personal, focusing on the physical body's presence or absence in a world increasingly mediated by digital images.
Andrén’s paintings explore what it means to be human in an age where the self is constantly challenged by new media and changing environments.
Her subjects, often drawn from personal encounters or memories, reflect this tension between physical reality and its digital representations.
Philosophical Reflections: Perception and Identity
Andrén's art is deeply philosophical. It draws on a wide range of influences—from cognitive science to literature—to probe how we perceive ourselves and others.
One might think that in a world with infinite images, our sense of self would be more secure. But Andrén suggests the opposite.
Minda Andrén, Pull it by the armpits (psychic massage), 2024, 120 x 90 x 3,5 cm, Oil and gesso on canvas | photo: (c) Jennifer Gelardo -> Minda Andrén, "7:23 AM, the most stressful time of day", 2023, Oil and pigmented gesso on canvas, 120h x 85w x 3.5 cm | photo: (c) Flavio Palasciano
The more images we have, the harder it becomes to find ourselves within them.
Her work reflects on how identity is not fixed but constantly shifting, influenced by external factors like technology, ecology, and the media.
She raises questions about how we see ourselves and whether these representations are accurate or merely a reflection of the world around us.
Art Practice: Material and Method
Andrén's practice is rooted in the history of painting, but she pushes the medium in new directions.
Her work often involves recycling images from her daily life—whether through physical media such as photographs, digital media, or her memories—and reconfiguring them on canvas.
Minda Andrén -> Work in progress, Images Courtesy of Minda Andrén Studio, photo: (c) Minda Andrén
The result is a blend of narrative and abstraction, where the body is sometimes present, sometimes implied, and sometimes absent altogether.
Her paintings are layered, both in terms of their material construction and the ideas they express.
Andrén often uses oil and gesso on canvas, but it’s the way she combines these materials with digital elements that sets her work apart.
Dominique Catherina Foertig
Bruno Mokross - Vienna Contemporary 2024 - ZONE1
This fusion creates a tension between the physical and the immaterial, mirroring the tension she explores between the self and its representations.
Exhibitions: A Growing Influence
Andrén's work has been shown in various significant exhibitions across Europe and Australia.
In 2024, she will be featured at the Vienna Contemporary as part of Gallery Zeller van Almsick's presentation at ZONE1.
This follows her participation in the 2023 exhibition "Über das Neue" at Belvedere 21 in Vienna, where she showcased her series "Do you like the dust we breathe" (2023).
This work, like much of her art, uses the body as a focal point to explore the anxieties and pressures of modern life.
Her exhibitions are not just displays of art but invitations to reflect on the deeper issues of identity, perception, and how we relate to the world around us.
Whether it's a solo show like "Stones Grow Soft" at Zeller van Almsick in 2021 or her participation in group exhibitions like "The Disorganized Body" , curated by Frédéric Bonnet , in 2022, Andrén's work consistently challenges viewers to think about the role of images in shaping our reality.
Minda Andrén's work is a reminder that art can still be a powerful tool for exploring the self, even in an age dominated by images.
She doesn't offer easy answers but instead presents her audience with the complexities of modern identity.
Minda Andrén: Why is a Raven like a writing Desk at BKA
Her paintings are not just to be looked at but to be engaged with, asking us to consider how we see ourselves and how we are seen in a world that is increasingly visual and mediated.
Additonal Informations about the Gallery and Artist
Minda Andrén - Zeller van Almsick
Exhibiton September 2024 at Zeller van Almsick
DAAN VAN GOLDEN, HONG ZEISS, LAURENT DUPONT, MEGAN PLUNKETT, SOPHIE NYS
Artworks Upon the Earth, curated by Piero Bisello
September 13 – October 31, 2024
Franz-Josefs-Kai 3/161010 WienWED — FRI, 12 - 6PM
Munchies Art Club has selected three artists, including the talented Minda Andrén, Sebastian Schachinger, and Evy Jokhova, to showcase their work in the specially curated show ZONE1, among other promising artists, by Bruno Mokross at this year's Vienna Contemporary Art Fair.
To learn more about the curator's vision, explore the links below.
Dominique Catherina Foertig
ZONE1 - Artist Evy Jokhova - Vienna Contemporary 2024
Dominique Catherina Foertig
ZONE1- Artit R. Sebastian Schachinger - Vienna Contemporary 2024
Member discussion