VOLATILE
Laura Schawelka
MAR 9 — APR 2, 2022
According to Media Theory scholar, McKenzie Wark, fiction and fact, although commonly taken as opposites, are rooted in a basic similarity: a practice. Both are actions that insert into the world and whose significance and existence are inherently linked. It is thus undeniable that fiction lies in the very core of the reproduction of facts, for there is always an interference by the one reporting. This agency lies in its origin: (lat.) fingere/fictio—"to shape/shaping." As Wark points out: sometimes we need a fiction to hold facts together.
It is interesting to reflect on the mechanisms for (re)constructing an event. Most of the time, the parallel stories surrounding it become the perfect means for its reproduction and commercialization.
Laura Schawelka's work utilizes photography's trompe-l'oeil and editing capabilities to examine the nuanced correlation between real and fake. Her latest works explore alternative narratives in the production of fine replicas and their value. For example, in Nefertiti by Tina Haim-Wentscher, 1913, 2021, Schawelka portrays the first copy of Nefertiti's bust commissioned in 1913 by its owner, James Simon, to Tina Haim-Wentscher, a sculptor from Berlin. Given the fragile state of the original, the copy required a contactless copy, which was done based only on visual cues. Moreover, to this later version, Nefertiti's original's missing eye and broken ears were completed. Hence, many unauthorized copies followed after the more "appealing" version, displacing the replica its incomplete original.
Just as photography proclaims truth and authenticity by its mechanical character, it also constructs reality. Although the image does bear the imprint of reality, it also interprets it, as seen in Schawelka's Kendall Jenner at Madame Tussauds Berlin, 2021. Only the caption informs the viewer that this is just a wax copy of the American model. This way, Laura shows the deceptive authenticity of the photograph, creating a contrast between the caption and the picture.
As the central part of her practice, Schawelka delves into commercial photography, transcending the discussion about truth and false for that of seduction. Higher definitions demand better mimics, which simultaneously enable better means to simulate an idealized reality—an aspiration towards something fake triggers a desire in its consumers.
Thus in works like KaDeWe Floor, 2022, Prop Sculptures, 2022, and Prop Replica Handbags, 2022, the artist shows knock-off versions of luxury goods. The precision in the copy is uncanny despite its cheaper materials. Its value relies on the quality of its surface. There's no longer a distinction between fakes and originals, as long as it looks good on camera.
Lorena Moreno Vera and Olesia Shuvarikova, 2022