This show is based on the term Rosebud, a symbol for hidden childhood memories in the 1941 movie Citizen Kane. Works in different media connect this idea to the image of an old amusement park and the subtle monumentality it includes. A series of 134 hand painted posters announces the exhibition throughout the city before the big childishly coloured letters Rosebud at the entrance welcome visitors. Tranquil works mix with playful installative interventions in the gallery space. A photo series of Blackpool and a merry-go-round made out of driftwood can be seen side by side. The merry-go-round seems to be moving - the seats are flying, just as if the merry-go-round would swing, but it's a frozen moment in time.
The installation recalls the spectacle of fairs, while their materiality makes a connection to lost or hidden memories.
Exhibited at ROSEBUD, Patriothall Gallery, Edinburgh, 2009, Photos © B. Mürner
Merry-go-round, exhibited at Kunst am Wasser, Berne, 2010
Sebastian Utzni
Rosebud
Further works