We are delighted to invite you to Mădălina Zaharia’s first Romanian solo show, “The Staging of An Exhibition”, opening on Friday, 8 July, starting 7 PM.

”Plan

noun | \’plan\

1  : a drawing or diagram drawn on a plane: as

    a: a top or horizontal view of an object

    b: a large-scale map of a building

2  a: a method for achieving an end 

     b: an often customary method of doing something: procedure

     c:  a detailed formulation of a program of action

3   : an orderly arrangement of parts of an overall design or objective

4   : a detailed program

The exhibition takes as its starting point two very different and contrasting representations of the gallery space, the architectural blueprint of the building and a hand-made sketch of the upper floor, in order to orchestrate and articulate a very abstract and self-reflective theatrical set. Drawing on the Brechtian belief that a play is never reality itself but rather a mere representation of it, the show takes the form of a patterned and ever-fluid scenario in which white walls become lines, lines become objects and objects become images adorning the white walls. In this sense, the works on display act as a very personal and affectionate description of the space and its habitual function, challenging its theatrical potential while constantly replacing reality with imagination. 
 
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The online presence of the gallery is also an important factor in the way this narrative is structured and presented, enunciating an immaterial and virtual existence of the space, as well as drawing attention to the literal and methodical circumstances of such a discourse. This visual and abstract investigation of the building functions as a speculative ‘mise-en-scene’, offering the viewers a pre-enacted and mediated interaction with the space and guiding their attention towards both the physical presence and soft infrastructure of the location. The setting develops in this regard, into an exercise in navigating and operating a structure, following closely and meticulously George Perec’s assumption that “to live is to pass from one space to another, while doing your very best not to bump yourself”.” (Mădălina Zaharia)

Madalina Zaharia’s work is concerned with the telling and re-telling of ideas, with the continuous and unfaltering reiteration of accounts and associations. It focuses on the relationship between memory and grammar and explores the unavoidable inadequacy between remembering and representation. Each piece is an actor with a prescribed set of actions and responsibilities, a character in her investigation, a thespian dressed with all her objects and desires. The very fine line between art, design and storytelling is constantly challenged and confronted by the language and visual vocabulary employed within her creative actions, transforming the exhibition space into a stage for conceptual discourse and abstract entertainment, an arena animated by gestures, objects and meaningful shapes. 

Madalina Zaharia (b.1985, Sighetu Marmatiei, Romania) lives and works in London. She graduated from the Royal College of Art with an MA in Printmaking in 2012 having gained a Postgraduate diploma in Fine Art at Byam Shaw School of Art (CSM) in 2010 and a BA in Cinematography and Media at the University of the Arts, Bucharest, Romania in 2008. Solo exhibitions include; LOOKING LONDON, TALKING TOKYO, Tintype Gallery, London, (2015), A well furnished room, IngridProjects, London, (2014) and Kitz.Pmz.AAAAA!, Tintype Gallery, London (2013). Group exhibitions and events include; London Open 2015, Whitechapel Gallery, London, (2015), Feel the discourse!, Guest Projects, London, (2015) and The Forgotten Pioneer Movement, District Kunst und Kulturforderung, Berlin, Germany, (2014). Represented by Tintype Gallery, London.

The exhibition can be visited until 10 September 2016, Wednesday to Saturday, 13-18, or by appointment outside the visiting hours.
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