For her first solo exhibition in the UK, Brazilian artist Rose Klabin will show two innovative series, both of which integrate the subject matter into the production of the artwork.
The first series, Corporate Identity, saw Klabin spending two weeks at a paper factory in the south of Brazil. First, she captured images of the machines at work in the jungle, using raking angles to highlight the vast industrial structures in the forest. She then photographed the reforestation reserves around the factory and superimposed these over the original images. The results are then printed on paper produced at the factory.
Corporate Identity works on many levels, looking directly at corporate responsibility, man versus nature and sustainability, as Brazil emerges as a powerful economic force.
Klabin’s most recent series, Rise and Fall, is the result of an extensive road trip through the south of the USA. Throughout the journey she documented the impact of the sub-prime mortgage crisis, compiling over 5,000 images of abandoned homes. Back in Brazil, she documented the other side of the coin, focusing on the huge construction boom in Sao Paolo. Rise and Fall is the result of overlaying these conflicting realities to create a third, more abstract vision. The images are then printed on insular sheets, a material used in construction.
Born in Rio de Janeiro, Klabin has lived in New York and London, where she graduated from Central Saint Martins with an MA in Fine Arts. She has since moved back to Brazil where she investigates contemporary Brazilian life, with a particular interest in corporate culture.