Award Winners Exhibition 2015

AWA R D W I N N E R S E XH IBIT I O N 2 015 Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair Anu Vahtra

Chimera Art Award & Kรถler Prize

Chimera-Project Gallery

Estonian Institute in Hungary

KlauzĂĄl tĂŠr 5.

Falk Miksa u. 22. fe. 2.

H-1072 Budapest

H-1055 Budapest

Patrick Urwyler Director & Owner +36 30 768 29 47

+36 (1) 386 2462 budapest@estinst.ee

patrick@chimera-project.com www.chimera-project.com

www.esztorszag.hu

CONTENT Foreword

05

Introduction

06

Exhibition Review

12

Interviews

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Artist CVs

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About the Initiator

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Partners 46 Imprint

Catalog cover front and back: Anu Vahtra, Rip-Off, 2010 (p.15) Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair, Scroll Down, 2014 (detail, p.28)

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P ROL OG

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F O R EW O R D Ab out t his c at a l o g

This catalog aims to be an introduction and a case study for an initiative that is exceptional and

groundbreaking in many ways. As an exhibition catalogue its first duty is to document the Award

Winners exhibition taking place October 2015 in the Budapest based Chimera-Project Gallery and

to introduce the work of two emerging artists, Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair, winner of the Chimera Art Award 2015 and Anu Vahtra, winner of the accomplished KĂśler Prize in 2015.

The catalog also presents a young, but very ambitious art award, the Chimera Art Award and the

exemplary and forward-thinking cooperations behind it, between different professional institutions:

the initiator and name-giver, the Chimera-Project Gallery, the sponsor of the prize, Works.io online art platform and the professional partners of this year’s award, the Estonian Institute in Hungary and our great jury board.

The structure of cooperation and exhibition model focus simultaneously on two award winners from

the CEE region and grow from a recognition of the CEE as a constructive hinterland and from a vision to encourage regional connections and to raise attention toward the region as a whole. We believe

that initiatives like ours, with experienced partnerships, help to discover and develop our CEE mindset and muscles as an acknowledged source of self-understanding and great fun.

We would like to thank all the contributors that took part in this adventure!

Bogi Mittich, Patrick Urwyler aka Chimera-Project Gallery

Curators of the exhibition and Initiators of the Chimera Art Award

INTRODUCTION

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INTRODUCTION THE AWARD WINNERS EXHIBITION & THE CHIMERA ART AWARD 2014–2015

In 2015 the award winners exhibition took place already the second time. The exhibition is the

highlight and main prize of the Chimera Art Award, that was launched in 2014 first as a global call.

The goal of the founders of the award, (namely Chimera-Project Gallery and Works.io, the online

portfolio platform), is to help emerging artists gain visibility on an international level and advance their career. The award immediately received considerable attention internationally after 546 applicants

from 74 countries submitted 7749 artworks in response to a call that ended with a Japanese winner, Tsuyoshi Anzai.

In 2015 the Chimera Art Award, in reflecting the gallery’s regional commitment, set its focus on

Central-Eastern Europe. In order to encourage regional cooperation and raise awareness in 2015 the Award Winners Exhibition was extended and the winner of the Chimera Art Award exhibited with the winner of the most esteemed Estonian award, the Köler Prize. The Köler Prize was founded by the

Contemporary Art Museum Estonia (EKKM) in 2011. Every year, five artists or artist groups active in

Estonia are nominated based on their work during the last three years. With the Estonian Institute in Hungary as a partner, the Award Winner’s Exhibition not only introduced two great emerging artists, but also another CEE award which visitors can follow in the future.

Meant as a true career milestone, the Chimera Art Award is committed to having a jury board of highly recognized professionals. In 2015 the jury consisted of: Fabian Schöneich, curator of Portikus, Frankfurt

Katalin Spengler, art collector and writer from Budapest

Nicola Trezzi, head of the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design MFA program in Jerusalem and editor in large of Flash Art International.

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From the 188 submitted portfolios representing 18 regional countries, they shortlisted 10 artists and choose Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair as winner.

The Winners prize Shapiro-Obermair won, was a career advancing package with a cataloged

exhibition, an exhibition budget of 1000 USD, an exhibition review and a Pro Package with the online career-manager platform, Works.io.

The exhibition was curated by Chimera-Project Gallery in close collaboration with the artists. Special care was given to show characteristic, milestone works of the artist’s portfolio and to encourage the production of new works and re-setting of old work constellations.

To turn the award ceremony into a celebration and a networking event, Chimera-Project Gallery invited the artists and all the jury members to the exhibition opening to encourage dialogue between them.

Accompanying events included a guided tour, an introductory talk and a book launch for Anu Vahtra’s latest publication to round off the program.

Chimera Art Award Shortlist 2015 Silvia Amancei Bogdan Armanu

www.works.io/silvia-amancei-bogdan-armanu

Peter Cábocky www.works.io/peter-cabocky Charlie Dance www.works.io/charlie-dance Mark Fridvalszki

www.works.io/mark-fridvalszki

Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair

www.works.io/ekaterina-shapiro-obermair

Mateusz Sarello

www.works.io/mateusz-sarello

Petr Kratky www.works.io/petr-kratky Gabriel Orłowski Marko Vojnić

Magda Wegrzyn

www.works.io/gabriel-orlowski www.works.io/marko-vojnic

www.works.io/magda-wegrzyn

INTRODUCTION / CHIM ER A A RT AWA R D 2014

Chimera Art Award 2014 From left to right: Patrick Urwyler (Chimera-Project Gallery), Tsuyoshi Anzai (Winner), Zsolt Petrรกnyi (Head of Jury, Director of the Contemporary Collection, Hungarian National Gallery), Bogi Mittich (Chimera-Project Gallery)

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Chimera Art Award 2014 Doppelgänger installation by Tsuyoshi Anzai Exhibition view, Chimera-Project Gallery

INTRODUCTION / CHIM ER A A RT AWA R D 2015

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Chimera Art Award 2015 From left to right: Nicola Trezzi (Jury), Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair (Winner), Patrick Urwyler & Bogi Mittich (Chimera-Project Gallery), Katalin Spengler (Jury), Fabian Schรถneich (Jury)

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Chimera Art Award 2015 Installation by Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair Exhibition view, Chimera-Project Gallery

E XHIBITION REV IEW

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E X H I B I T I O N R E V IE W

by F lór a G adó

In this year’s Chimera Art Award exhibition the audience encountered the works of Ekaterina Shapiro-

Obermair and Anu Vahtra. Entering the gallery space, the first work you meet is Anu Vahtra’s four large prints with two small-sized framed works upstairs. In the gallery’s room on the left Shapiro-Obermair’s installation was exhibited. Even though the works were presented separately, the common motifs became visible.

Anu Vahtra became well-known because of her photographs and large scale site-specific installations which are influenced by architectural dilemmas and the tension between public space, exhibition

space and the possible dialogue between the two. On one hand Vahtra’s works are reflecting on the

practice of exhibition making and on the other they are research based installations drawing from the historical context of a certain building.

At the Chimera Art Award Exhibition, Anu Vahtra presented not her architectural installations but

works reflecting more on the question of the institutional landscape, exhibition spaces and different kinds of dialogues between the two. This logic fits into the previous exhibitions organized by the

Chimera-Project, for example the solo show of Stano Masar (After Art, 2014) about self-referential tendencies in art.

On the upper part of the gallery Vahtra’s 2014 work, Dear Laura and Pascale was presented. It’s a

letter to the two curators, explaining in a sophisticated way why the artist can’t participate in their

exhibition Side Effects II, in Grenoble (2014). On the other page a part of an exhibition guide is visible.

The letter itself, however, was originally sent to Margit Säde, curator of the exhibition If It’s Part Broke, Half Fix It (2010) and adapted to the new situation while Vahtra was preparing for the exhibition

curated by Laura Kuusk and Pascale Riou. Thus, reflecting the mindset of neo-conceptualism, the

simple letter became an artwork which finally the curators presented in the exhibition. However, the

current exhibition situation was different, as the artist herself was present in several ways and did not cancel her participation in the show. So what does this letter have to do with the Chimera Art Award

exhibition? With this gesture, both Anu Vahtra and the gallery owners broke the previous “pattern” and

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the text which was once perceived with negative connotations, lost its previous meaning in its new

context and became a fully conceptual artwork. A simple but important transformation became visible.

The other work, consisting of a frame with three separate stripped postcards, related to Anu

Vahtra’s interest in the gallery space and minimalistic interventions. Rip-Off (2010) made several

references simultaneously: one was the artist’s diploma project, in which she created wallpaper-sized

photographs of the very same empty exhibition space, in which the works themselves were presented (2007). The other was a graduate project by another artist one year later, which, by coincidence or not, resembled Vahtra’s previously mentioned installation. Vahtra used the postcards published of

this other artwork by her “epigone”, and “removed” the walls in a similar way she had been interfering with physical space before. It’s important to mention again: playing with the space and expanding it

virtually, referring to the white-cube and the institutional system (from the art school to the museum) became crucial in Vahtra’s oeuvre.

For the series below the gallery (120409–120511, 2012) Vahtra worked together with the artist

and designer Na Kim. Their goal was to form a visual dialogue while exchanging only images and

examining the constructions which evolve from this playful project. As both artists are often dealing with space it was an interesting turn toward the two-dimensional world and examine how far they

could push its limits. For this collaboration Vahtra used the camera and Kim used the scanner in order to create abstract constellations from everyday objects found in their studios. The joint project lost its relation to three-dimension and rather became a close-up of different sensational and tactile matters.

This series, close to the space and works of Shapiro-Obermair’s, formed a visual dialogue with

Shapiro-Obermair’s works. Even though the piece is quite different from the ones exhibited in the

gallery, it is important to mention here Vahtra’s site-specific installation: The walls stand, speechless

and cold, one of the works for which she had won the Köler Prize. The piece which was presented at

the Contemporary Art Museum Estonia deals with the dynamics of the museum space and the public

space. Her site-specific work from 2014–2015 (Illusion, distorted perspective, lack of balance, another dimension I–III), which as an adaptation was also exhibited at the Köler Prize show, is dealing with

architectural and institutional problematics. Vahtra’s starting point was a postcard which depicted the

famous “Leaning House” in Tartu, while it was under reconstruction (1980s). Estonia’s “Tower of Pisa” has been the building of Tartu Art Museum since 1988 and the artist was interested in the tension between its historical past and the building’s current position in the institutional landscape. First,

Vahtra reconstructed the old metal support structure of the “Leaning House” and then performed

several interventions in the building itself. In the work’s third phase she examined the representations of the house, again making use of postcards depicting the building.

E XHIBITION REV IEW / A NU VA HTR A

Anu Vahtra Dear Laura and Pascale, 2014 Pen on xerox print, edition of 1, 40 x 30 cm (Courtesy of AAA – Association pour l’Agencement des Activités)

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Anu Vahtra Rip-off, 2010 Stripped postcards, series of 3, edition of 1, 10.5 x 14.6 cm (Courtesy of private collection)

E XHIBITION REVI EW / A NU VA HTR A

Anu Vahtra (in collaboration with Na Kim) 120409–120511, 2012 Inkjet print, series of 16, edition 1/5+2AP, 42 x 60 cm

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E XHIBITION REVI EW / A NU VA HTR A

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Anu Vahtra, Award Winner’s Exhibition Exhibition views, Chimera-Project Gallery, Budapest

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Anu Vahtra The walls stand, speechless and cold, 2015 Site-specific installation at the Contemporary Art Museum Estonia (EKKM)

E XHIBITION REVI EW / EKATER I NA S HA P I R O- O BE RMAI R

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Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair often deals with the legacy of the Russian avant-garde, questions

related to architecture and urban space, and she is interested in “the correlation of formal and social

issues.” In her installations the artist combines modernist-minimalistic approaches with the strategies of repetition and multiplicity, in order to create a precise, yet often uncanny work. These special

“constellations”, which combine paintings and videos as well as found objects, also reflect on the

post-socialist era, our current geopolitical circumstances and present a new kind of dialogue with the history of art.

In Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair’s installation, all three exhibition elements presented – the painting hanging high on the wall, the strange cross-shaped wooden installation with objects and the

video – could be considered as one work. What the visitor saw first – as a quite unusual but very

powerful set-up – was the back of a big monitor fastened to a pole. Installed towards the corner of the

room, it evoked the tradition of Russian icons which were often presented in the corner like in the case of Kazimir Malevich, who according to an archive photo, showed his famous Black Square at the Last Futurist Exhibition of Paintings 0.10 (1915, Dobychina Art Bureau at Marsovo Pole, Petrograd). Also,

the video, which did not face the audience, suggested that it needed attention and a private space to

be watched. The video titled Display Case (2014) is a short “documentary”, shot in the Central Armed Forces Museum, Moscow in April 2014. According to the artist, the visitors, mostly school classes “were in high spirits due to the fact that Crimea has recently become Russian again”. The shaky

camera work suggests that the artist used her camera in a secret way and filmed the guided tours and the children’s reactions without their knowing. As the video presented the exhibition’s display which

evoked patriotic feelings through emphasizing the several victories of the Soviet-Russian Army, we got an honest and striking documentation of how children react in this situation. The title refers to the fact, that only one display was dedicated to the Holocaust and the concentration camps, marking it just as an “episode” in the history of the World War II. Becoming voyeur, the viewer could hear and observe how the students were stunned learning that the Nazis used human bodies for industrial purposes, especially human skin and hair. The video suggests in a simple yet powerful way, how vague the

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students’ knowledge is and how difficult it is for children to find a relatable “point” in history. In

Addition, the “official” narrative of the museum itself becomes even more important as we realize that

the word “holocaust” or “jew” is not even mentioned by the adults. The silence is very suggestive as it underlines the institutions underlying political agenda.

In the other part of the room, four cross-shaped objects were standing (Untitled, 2011–2015). their shape and colors resembled Shapiro-Obermair’s installation which was presented in 2014 at the

Ludwig Museum’s Holocaust exhibition in Budapest. The abstract, constructivist object shown at Chimera-Project, which also looked like a piece of furniture, had a poetic, mysterious aura which

worked well with the documentary style video. It also had some figurative elements: the “crosses” were standing on glasses and small busts of Vladimir Putin and Angela Merkel in a small pot were

placed on them. The fact that the two politicians were presented close to the ground in a ridiculous size could be seen as an ironic gesture towards current political circumstances. The miniature

portraits also behaved as anti-monuments mocking the famous and enormous sculptures about

warriors or politicians. The last piece (Scroll Down, 2014) was an abstract, black and white painting which also reflected on the artist’s interest in the Russian avant-garde tradition and the question of repetition and multiplicity in art. According to the artist, the black and white upper motif resembled

a stylized Ribbon of Saint George – a widely recognized military symbol in Russia, which symbolizes the Soviet Union’s victory in World War II – which linked back the whole concept to the video about the Central Armed Forces Museum and the question of today’s military forces. However, it is also

important to note, that since the mid-2010’s the black and orange Ribbon of Saint George became the symbol of the supporters of Vladimir Putin, or as The Moscow Times online named it as representing, the “unofficial Putin’s Army.” Thus the abstract painting of Shapiro-Obermair not only goes back in

time, referring to the Russian avant-garde but points out the present situation in Russia, emphasizing the new, nationalist movements and ideologies.

There are several parallel motifs between the works of Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair and Anu Vahtra which add another layer to the exhibition. The two artists not only share a similar biography – as both of them were born during the socialist period in an ex-soviet country and studied abroad –

but they share interest in rethinking the modernist tradition as well as a continuous awareness

towards architecture and urbanism. They engage deeply with the past, (history of a specific place/

environment), and focus on current socio-political questions and use research based artistic methods.

Shapiro-Obermair and Vahtra often create minimalistic installations with a conceptual background

finding similar influences and approaches, but reaching end results that reveal two distinctive oeuvres.

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Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair

Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair

untitled, 2011–2015

Display Case, 2014

Varnish on wood, glasses, figurines (installation view, front)

Video 10´14´´ (installation view, monitor)

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Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair Scroll Down, 2014 Gouache on wood (installation view, top)

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Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair Display Case, 2014 Video 10´14´´ (video stills)

INTERVIEWS

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I N T ERV I E W WIT H T H E A R T IS TS An u Vaht r a and Ek a te ri n a S h a p i ro -Ob e rmai r meet Fl óra Gadó

Flóra Gadó: What is your opinion about the region’s contemporary art scene and institutional landscape? What is your position in this field?

Anu Vahtra: It is a difficult question as the region is not that easy to define. Estonia, where I’m

from, is geographically situated in “the periphery” of the CEE, and therefore by default I find myself

thinking about the situation in the Baltic-Nordic region, the more immediate surrounding. However, I

think the scene in the former Eastern Block countries has become really vibrant over the past years.

The institutional landscape is being shaped by young initiatives and professionals who share a

contemporary mindset, there definitely is quite some restructuring taking place. Next to working as an artist I also run Lugemik Publishing and Bookshop (together with Indrek Sirkel), teach in the Estonian Academy of Arts and work as a freelance photographer in the field – I’m definitely part of the artistic and cultural production happening now.

Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair: There is a certain idea, that the art in this region should be politically engaged, but that could be a stereotype. From my point of view I can say that my „Moskow

background“ and my current living in Vienna mark a frame of reference for the field of my artistic research and practise.

FG: What could be the role of a new prize, like the Chimera Art Award? How does it differ from other art awards?

AV: As Chimera Project also states, one of the roles of an art prize is to raise artists’ international

visibility. But furthermore, to provide an opportunity to produce and show new work, and to create a

certain platform for discussion and exchange between artists and other professionals from the field. I

think in general it’s quite rare for a gallery to initiate an international open call art award, therefore I find Chimera Art Award rather special.

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Anu Vahtra

INTERVIEWS

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ESO: I find it important, that the prize is initiated by art professionals, who belong to the same

generation. That differs a lot from other prizes, given by state, art institutions or big corporations.

It is a nice feeling to become a part of an emerging project. I think it is also quite important, that

Chimera Art Award is installed by a gallery based in Budapest. As a prize with a focus on artists not

only from Hungary, but from the whole CEE region it makes a political statement abroad about a local independent art scene. The cooperation with the platform Works.io shows possibilities, how a contemporary art gallery could function in the future.

FG: What kind of potential do you see when presenting two award winners in one exhibition?

AV: An exhibition of two different award winners yet to be announced is in a way quite a courageous plan, especially when the representatives of the institution hosting the show are not part of either of

the juries. The potential, however, lies in the opportunity for the two artists to be brought together, to meet and learn about each other’s work, at the same time entering a new art scene.

ESO: The presenting of two award winners creates a situation, which is quite open. In our case there was like two exhibitions, where some common topics or elements have started to interact.

FG: How would you describe the cooperation with the gallery? How did you choose which work should be presented?

AV: It was great! I was impressed with Bogi’s and Patrick’s enthusiasm, and professional yet

easygoing correspondence, also, felt like we speak the same language. As I wasn’t able to make

new work for the exhibition nor be there for installing or opening, we put together a selection of my

previous works based on our concise and constructive discussions. I mostly work site-specific so for me it was a new situation to try to combine previously made works and planning the layout without

having physically been in the space. Nevertheless, the combination of the three quite different pieces created an interesting triangle and worked as a coherent overview of my practice as well.

ESO: The collaboration with the gallery was based on a dialogue. That is the best thing

which you can expect as an artist from a hosting institution. I had full freedom to realize whatever I wanted, but I need to thank Bogi and Patrick for motivating me to create a new sculpture.

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Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair

INTERVIEWS

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I N T ERV I E W WIT H C H IME R A -PROJECT Bo gi M it t ic h an d P a tri c k U rw y l e r me e t Ti n a K apl ár, A rt Gui de E ast

Tina Kaplár: Chimera Art Award was founded in 2014 by Chimera Project and Works.io, the

online artist portfolio platform. Could you give us some insights into the birth of the initiative?

Why did you find it important to establish a contemporary art prize?

Chimera-Project: We think, that managing an artist’s career is a very complex task both for an artist

and for a gallery. Together with our partner Works.io we find it very important to develop initiatives and tools which address these challenges, the Chimera Art Award is one of them.

The Chimera Art Award is designed carefully as a career boosting package: we tried to put together elements, which can be decisive for an emerging artist to make the take off in her/his early career.

First of all, already for the application the has to make an online professional portfolio, CV and artist statement. It is surprising that even professional artist have sometimes very bad or incomplete

web appearance or they use non-professional tools for it. Works.io is a tool which enables artists to have professional and always updated portfolios, so by this all applicants gain a new and free tool for managing their career also on a long term. As a second element, the award is designed

to create international visibility: our international jury consists of renowned art professionals, so

already introducing works to them can be supportive to an artist’s career. As third, the prize itself, an exhibition abroad with an appropriate exhibition budget is again an important milestone in an

artist’s development: The winner can have a proper show and also create new artworks. To raise

more attention to this exhibition from this year on we exhibit the Chimera Award winner together with

another prize winner of an established art prize, like this year the Köler prize from Estonia. As a fourth element, the exhibition gets a professional English review, that the winner can use in publications in

the future. As a fifth pillar, we care about the network building of the artist: additional to his exhibition, we organize several meetings with professionals, where the artist has the chance to present his/her

works. And as a sixth and open end element: we follow up with the first award winner, Tsuyoshi Anzai we created opportunities also since he won the award and we involved him in several exhibitions and calls internationally.

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TK: In 2014 the Chimera Art Award received great international attention: the 546 applications

with all together 7749 artworks from 74 countries, so an overall success. Could you evaluate the first edition in details?

Ch-P: These results were beyond our expectations and we were very happy about the amount and also the quality of the applications. We can say that we could reach exactly the targeted group:

professional emerging artists with great potentials. We are very grateful to our jury, who establish the high quality of the award by their selection.

The numbers were also a signal that the format is working and it is accessible: we have no fee and an easy and uncomplicated application process, made possible by Works.io. And it seems that we have a motivating prize and design which attracts artists from all around the globe.

And not only the application but the exhibition of the award winner also became a great success. We won the professional partnership of the Japanese Foundation. By this Tsuyoshi could additionally

realize a workshop in Budapest, which resulted in a new installation. For the show four new works were created, including two demanding large scale site-specific installations, based on local

participation. Part of the evaluation is also, that Works.io passed also a great test: the platform could

manage not only the massive application process with simultaneous upload and management of more than thousand artworks, but it prooved to be a great online jury tool. Since then many awards and also residency programs are using Works.io for managing their open calls.

TK: Do you follow the career of Tsuyoshi Anzai (JP) the winner of Chimera Art Award in 2014?

Ch-P: Yes. We are constantly updated about recent developments. And as we personally find his work remarkable also several collaborations emerged after his exhibition in Chimera-Project. We included him in a video selection which will be shown in New York this fall and we also participate together in a call for the Vienna Contemporary. We constantly travel and also present Anzai’s works to art

professionals, curators, gallerists and we make recommendations to support his applications. This is of course not something which you can take for granted already in advance, with Anzai it was a fortunate development.

TK: This year the prize is limited to CEE artists ? Why have you changed its focus?

Ch-P: We think that artists in the CEE region have great potentials. The CEE as a region has to be

presented and branded, this is a more efficient strategy to get visible on a global scale. I suppose, we

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share the same commitment towards the region as you guys, at Art Guide East. Focusing on a region means of course you have less applicants, but you also can raise a much focused attention which is

helpful for the winner and at the same time also for the region. We are constantly experimenting with the format of this award and we also want to stay open, so that we can address the necessities or interesting developments we see.

TK: The prize of the winner is an exhibition (with a budget up to 1000 USD) at the Chimera-

Project Gallery in Budapest together with the award winner of another established fine art prize.

Which fine art prize will it be and why is it important to make a joint exhibition for the two award-winners? What do you expect from this?

Ch-P: Yes, this year with the partnership of the Estonian Institute in Hungary the Chimera Award

Winner will exhibit together with the winner of the well-known Estonian art prize, the Köler Prize, who

is a very remarkable artist, Anu Vahtra. By showing two different award winners, the artistic production of different regions gets visible. This way we not only present outstanding artists of a region, but also introduce the two awards. This provides the chance for the viewers to follow through the Köler Prize Estonian contemporary art also in the future. By this we raise awareness internationally and we can

creates long-term and sustainable inter-regional interest. On a personal level, the two artists and also the jury members can get into connection, which can lead to later international exchange and future collaborations.

TK: Chimera Art Award has an independent international jury of art professionals. In 2015 the

jury consists of Fabian Schöneich, curator at Portikus, Frankfurt, Katalin Spengler, art collector and art writer from Budapest, Nicola Trezzi, head of the MFA program at Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem and Flash Art International editor at large. On what basis have you invited the member of jury ?

Ch-P: We would like to establish a prize, which is really adding to the winner’s career, that’s why

having high professional standards is very important for us. To reach this we involve international

professionals in the process of jurying. For warranting the independence of the jury Chimera Project is not part of the jury. Our jury decides on the winner of our award without any limitation and influence, so we select the jury member with special care. We would like to have mixed profile jury, which

consists professionals working in different fields of the arts and with different regional action radius. All our jury members have a great professional reputation and international relevance, their attention and insights is therefore valuable for our award and also for all applying artist.

A RTIST CV

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A N U VA H T RA *1982 in Tallinn , EE – l i v e s a n d w o rk s i n Tal l i nn, E stoni a

Anu Vahtra was born in 1982, Estonia. She received her BA in photography from the Estonian

Academy of Arts in 2005 and she graduated in 2007 from the Gerrit Rietveld Academy, Amsterdam.

She has exhibited in several international places like the Daegu Photo Biennale (South-Korea), De

Brakke Grond (Amsterdam) and the Contemporary Art Centre Vilnius. She has had solo exhibitions

in Amsterdam and Tallinn. In 2015 she was the winner of the Köler Prize. She was nominated for the

Kristjan Raud Prize (2015) and the Sadolin Art Prize (2014). She has participated in several residency programs, for example in Lithuania and Norway. She lives and works in Tallinn.

STUDIES 2005 – 2007 2002 – 2005 2004 2001 – 2002

Gerrit Rietveld Academy, Amsterdam, photography BFA Estonian Academy of Arts, photography BA Bergen Academy of Art and Design, Norway, photography Tallinn University, art education

SOLO EXHIBITIONS 2015 2011 2009 2005

Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair and Anu Vahtra, Chimera Project Gallery, Budapest, HU Untitled (a line has two sides aka any of the twenty-four triangles). Estonia Av. 15A, Tallinn EE Homage to Gordon Matta-Clark. A4, Amsterdam NL Sketchbook. Deconstructing Pärnu: locations, individuals. Rael Artel Gallery, Pärnu EE

GROUPE EXHIBITIONS (SELECTION) 2015

2014

Köler Prize 2015 Nominees’ Exhibition. The Museum of Contemporary Art of Estonia (EKKM), Tallinn EE MEEL. VAHTRA. FARKAS_idealist function, Contemporary Art Centre (CAC), Vilnius LT Grain, Wood, Flax, Turf, Voorkamer, Lier BE Feeling Queezy?!, The Contemporary Art Museum of Estonia (EKKM), Tallinn EE

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2013

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005 2004

Archeological festival a 2nd hand history and improbable obsessions, Tartmus, Tartu EE Side Effects II., Ancien Musée-Bibliothèque, Grenoble, Grenoble FR Where You End, I Begin, Tartu Art House, Tartu EE Romeo and Julia, Y-gallery, Tartu and 1 May Gallery, Tallinn EE III Artishok Biennale, The Contemporary Art Museum of Estonia, Tallinn EE Archaeology and Future of Estonian Art Scenes, KUMU Art Museum, Tallinn EE The Science of Photography. With Na Kim, Daegu Photo Biennale 2012, Daegu KR. Time to Meet: The Second Act – A Festival on Photography Goes Live, De Brakke Grond, Amsterdam NL Everybody is Possible But Nothing is Real, Aeroplastics Contemporary, Brussels BE Fire & Ignorance. A collaboration with Idan Hayosh, Anders Hana and Morten J. Olsen. CTM Festival, Festsaal Kreuzberg, Berlin DE Above the City, Tallinn City Gallery, Tallinn EE Time to Meet: Sugary Photographs with Tricks, Poses & Effects. Novylon, Antwerpen BE Amsterdam Biennale: Tallinn pavilion. Mediamatic, Amsterdam NL We Belong Together. Supernova, Riga LV Fire & Ignorance. A collaboration with Idan Hayosh, Anders Hana and Morten J. Olsen.

Henie-Onstad Kunstsenter, Oslo NO and various other locations around Europe EP–Residency 2008 Artblock Hoyerswerda. Hoyerswerda DE Doings or Not, Vžigalica Gallery, Ljubljana SI The Polaroid Show. Curated by Eyal Pinkas. Apartment Gallery, Amsterdam NL I. Curated by Margot Kask, Hobusepea Gallery, Tallinn EE Time to Meet: Wie Sieht’s Denn Hier Aus?! Forum für Kunst und Architektur, Essen DE Save the Last Dance. P/////AKT, Amsterdam NL Dislocated, VAAL Gallery, Tallinn EE Time to Meet: Pigeons on the balcony invites guests. P////AKT, Amsterdam NL Stilleben, PROJEKT 0047, Berlin DE Video 2004: Video Art from Northern and Balticum. Bergen Art Hall, Bergen NO

RESIDENCIES, GRANTS 2015 2014 2010 2009 2008

Ministry of Culture / Estonian Artists’ Association grant, Estonia Contemporary Art Centre (CAC), Vilnius LT (with Lugemik) Sørfinnset Skole / the nord land. Sørfinnset, Gildeskal NO STEIM. Amsterdam NL EP–Residency 2008. Hoyerswerda DE

A RTIST CV

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E K AT ER I N A S H A P IR O -OB E R M AIR *1980 in M os k o w, R U – l i v e s a n d w o rk s i n Vi enna, A ustri a

Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair lives and works in Vienna. She was born and brought up in Moscow

and emigrated to Germany in 1998. She studied painting and sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg and Vienna, where she obtained her diploma in 2009 with Manfred Pernice. Recent

exhibitions include: “Tales of Two Cities” in Jewish Museum Judenplatz, Vienna (2015) and Moscow Museum of Modern Art, Moscow (2014), “[silence] – A Holocaust Exhibition”, Ludwig Múzeum

Budapest, Budapest (2014), “Critical Alliances”, Croatian Association of Visual Artists HDLU, Zagreb (2012); curator of the project “Soviet Modernism. Unknown Stories” at the Architekturzentrum Wien, Vienna (2012). Editor of The Great Moscow, that Never Was (2008). In 2014 she received an annual grant from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, New York.

STUDIES 2009

2005–2006

2004 1999–2004

Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria, performative art and sculpture class of Prof. Monica Bonvicini, diploma by Prof. Manfred Pernice University of Applied Arts Vienna, Austria, sculpture and multimedia class of Prof. Erwin Wurm Berlin University of the Arts (UDK), Germany, class of Prof. Katharina Sieverding Academy of Fine Arts Nuremberg, Germany, painting and object art class of Prof. Rolf-Gunter Dienst, honour as “Meisterschülerin”

SOLO EXHIBITIONS 2015

2013 2012

2011

Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair and Anu Vahtru, Chimera Project Gallery, Budapest Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair and Belinda Kazeem, Friedl Kubelka Fotoschule at the Parallel Vienna, Alte Post, Vienna Free Collection Vienna #5, them and us, Ve.Sch, Vienna Talk to the Driver, so that he does not Fall Asleep!, Gallery 5020, Salzburg Us and them, Ve.Sch, Vienna Parallel Actions 1, Gallery na Vspolnom, Moscow

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2010 2008

Salon systémique, Start Gallery in MUSA – Museum on Demand, Vienna Mental Rotations, together with Wolfgang Obermair, SWINGR, Vienna

GROUP EXHIBITIONS (SELECTION) 2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

Mission W – Sculpture in Wienerwald, Vienna Beyond the Obvious – Contemporary Women Artists from CEE, Deák Erika Galéria, Budapest Silk Road Love, Kunstsalon Seidenstrasse, Vienna Canvas, GPLcontemporary, Vienna Tales of Two Cities, Jewish Museum Judenplatz, Vienna Electronic Relationships, Parallel Vienna, Altes Zollamt FLUXUS – An Exhibition as Performance, Vienna Contemporary Tales of Two Cities, Moscow Museum of Modern Art on Gogolevsky boulevard, Moscow Urban View, periscope, Salzburg [silence] – A Holocaust Exhibition, Ludwig Múzeum Budapest, Budapest GOD IS NOT ENOUGH, Theater Drachengasse, Vienna SAY IT. RU> vol.1, Hans Knoll Project Space, Vienna Anton Faistauer Preis 2014 Galerie im Traklhaus, Salzburg (C) Free Collection Vienna, Ve.Sch, Vienna DIS-PLAY-PRATER-STERN – How we like to live, Fluc, public space on Praterstern, Vienna last time bevor Sommer break…, Ve.Sch, Vienna The Eschaton Reviewed: Tomorrow is Another Day, curated by Markus Proschek, BLACK BRIDGE OFFSPACE, Beijing An enlarged social horizon will bring advantages, Schneiderei, Vienna Critical Alliances, Croatian Association of Visual Artists (HDLU), Zagreb Predicting Memories, Vienna Art Week, Former K. K. Telegraph office, Vienna Sculpture Garden Strombad Kritzendorf, Austria The Art on your Wall, artclub1563, Seoul, South Korea re turn, Halle 20 Auf AEG, Nuremberg Burning with Passion, Gyeonggi Creation Center, Gyeonggi-do / South Korea 32. Österreichischer Grafikwettbewerb, Galerie im Taxispalais, Innsbruck (C) Dienstag Abend edition release, Ve.Sch, Vienna Future Garden, kunstbunker – forum für zeitgenössische kunst, Nuremberg NeoSI: neue Situationistische Inter…nationale, curated by Amer Abbas, Kunstverein Schattendorf, Schattendorf / Austria Antidepressiva, curated by Christian Stock, gallery Peithner-Lichtenfels, Vienna in effigie, together with Oliver Laric, Anja Manfredi and Markus Proschek, Seidlgasse 14, Vienna Die Fotografie in Referenz…, Fotohof, Salzburg

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2010

2009

2008

The Days of This Society Are Numbered, a contribution to Hugo Canoilas project Mural Newspaper, Abrons Arts Center NY, NYC Appartment Exhibition. Vienna Entourage, ArtRaum, Moscow Where do we go from here?, curated by Elisabeth Bettina Spörr, Secession, Vienna (C) Aquarellhappening 2000–2009, Tyrolean State Museum, Innsbruck The Merger – by following this 1 easy rule…, Venue Display, Chicago Double Volley, Gallery Area 53, Vienna Exhibition 6, Bäckerstraße4 – platform for young art, Vienna Villa Sovietica, MEG – Musée d‘ethnographie de Genève, Geneva 10. Aquarellhappening, Tux, Tyrolea Soviet objects. Corpus Delicti, diploma exhibition at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna Never Odd or Evil, together with Wolfgang Obermair and Markus Sulzbacher, Fenster C, Vienna (C) Paperworks, Gallery Area 53, Vienna Neo-SI?, curated by Amer Abbas, Gallery Tristesse deluxe, Berlin Oh, du lieber Augustin…, Georgien and Russian artists, Radovan-Halle, Vienna boss-eyed god, together with Tamas St.Auby, N&n gallery, Budapest Archive in Residence, Gallery UNA, Bucharest (C) Archive in Residence, VBKÖ – The Austrian Association of Women Artists, Vienna, 2007 If Chemicals Enter The Eyes, Wash Thoroughly With Clear Running Water, 5th Novosibirsk Graphic Art Biennal, Novosibirsk State Art Museum, Novosibirsk (C) Interfest, Contemporary Art Festival, Chernyakhovsk (former Insterburg) / Russia

RESIDENCIES, GRANTS 2015 Chimera Art Award 2014 Residency in Istanbul, supported by the Federal Ministry for Education, Arts and Culture Austria 2014 Annual grant of the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, New-York 2013 Scholarship of the Anni and Heinrich Sussmann Foundation, Vienna 2012 Residency in Budapest, supported by the city of Vienna and the city of Budapest 2011–12 Gyeonggi Creation Center, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea 2010 Start-Award of the Federal Ministry for Education, Arts and Culture 2009 Appreciation prize of the Federal Ministry for Science and Research, Austria 2009 Appreciation prize of the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria 2003 International Summer Academy Salzburg, Austria, videoart class by Ellen Cantor 2001 International Summer Academy Salzburg, Austria, installation class by Ilya & Emilia Kabakov

and Boris Groys

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A BOUT THE INITI ATOR

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C H I M E R A - P R OJ E C T Ab out Us

The Chimera-Project is a program gallery, established in 2013 in Budapest. Our gallery program is built on curated, thematic exhibitions to generate a meaningful discourse in contemporary art around relevant artistic and social topics.

Our gallery profile is reflecting the roots of Hungarian neo-avantgarde, conceptual art and includes recent conceptually grounded artistic practices from Hungary and Central Eastern Europe.

Through its founders, Chimera-Project has a strong international orientation: Patrick Urwyler is a Swiss art historian and curator and Bogi Mittich is a Hungarian sociologist. We worked in several art institutions in Berlin (Kunstraum Kreuzberg Bethanien), Budapest (Trafรณ, Videospace, Studio Gallery for Young Artists Association) and Berne (University of the Arts, Department of Culture, Biennale Berne).

Based on our background our goal is to support international exchange. Our annual program consists of two interrelated sections of exhibitions: one section we realize in our own gallery space, showing local and international positions and the other abroad through various exhibitions and related projects.

Patrick Urwyler

Bogi Mittich

Director & Owner

Gallery Manager

+36 30 768 29 47

+36 30 682 32 79

patrick@chimera-project.com

bogi@chimera-project.com

www.chimera-project.com

www.chimera-project.com

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PARTNERS

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PA R T N ER S Chim er a A r t Aw a rd W i n n e r Ex h i b i ti o n 2 0 1 5

Works.io Chimera Art Award Sponsor & Main Partner www.works.io

Estonian Institute in Hungary Chimera Art Award & Kรถler Prize Winners Exhibition Partner www.esztorszag.hu

Cultural Endowment of Estonia Award Winners Exhibition Catalog www.kulka.ee

Bundeskanzleramt ร sterreich Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair

Art Guide East Media Partner www.artguideeast.com

IMPRINT

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Publishers

Photos / Reproductions

Chimera-Project Gallery

© Géza Talabér

Patrick Urwyler

(All photos, exceptions indicated below)

H-1072 Budapest

© Anu Vahtra (p.14,15, 20, 21, 31)

Klauzál tér 5.

© Anu Vahtra & Na Kim (p.16, 17)

+36 30 768 29 47

© Wolfang Obermair (p. 29, 33)

patrick@chimera-project.com www.chimera-project.com

Print Kapitális Kft.

Estonian Institute in Hungary

H-4002 Debrecen

H-1055 Budapest

Balmazújvárosi út 14.

Falk Miksa u. 22. fe. 2.

info@kapitalis.hu

+36 (1) 386 2462

www.kapitalis.hu

budapest@estinst.ee www.esztorszag.hu

ISBN 978-963-12-4539-4