The new solo exhibition by artist Charlotte Eschenlohr - ThenewNew opened in XC.HuA Gallery Berlin on 2018.03.09

Taking place one day after World Women's day, the opening offered Eschenlohr the opportunity to talk about her own relationship to feminism, remembering an earlier exhibition in Hong Kong and her surprise that in China this special day is much more widely celebrated.Eschenlohr shared her enjoyment of the exhibition and welcomed her guests in a speech in which she expounded on her particular preference for floral motifs. Her series is inspired by two female icons in art, Pina Bausch and the american painter Georgia O´Keeffe. The flower motif has also influenced her own contemporary interpretations, with the flower being used as a symbol for feminine sexual energy and power, and as a form of erotically charged painting.

We live in a time of constant acceleration. The new series ThenewNew, whose title is inspired by Instagram-speak, underlines the overloading of visual information and creates a mixture of figurative and abstract painting. The new works are expressive in their intense colours and high-contrast compositions. From the depths of the paintings emerge oceans of flowers and vague forms, mostly feminine silhouettes. The eternal theme of femininity and beauty is also found in the ancient story of Amour and Psyche, which influences Eschenlohr’s subjects.

Eschenlohr starts from the basis of digital, abstract backgrounds. Through the application of various photographs and expressive brushstrokes, and through the use of stencils and spray-paints, her paintings seem interwoven with urban street art. She uses found objects, and motifs from advertising, architecture and design, as well as photographs from her own staged performances, and material produced during her working processes. High heels and ideals of the modern woman, as often portrayed by the mass media, are recurring motifs.

Four groups of works are shown, including paintings, photocollages, cut-out series, and the newly produced installation ThenewNew, which comprised of delicate, softly billowing semi-transparent prints, reacts subtly to movements in the room with its 72 individual parts.