Opening Reception: Friday, April 1, 2016 from  7–11pm

Dada turns 100 - long live the nonsense! Infected with these high-spirits, Berlin based artist duo Various & Gould has locked itself in the laboratory for several months creating new, surreal artworks for their first solo exhibition, "Permanently Improvised” at ANNO DOMINI Gallery in San Jose.

By merging methods such as painting, serigraphy and collage in their unique way, Various & Gould keep on extending the series "Rabotniki" (Russian for "workers"). In those pieces they raise the curtain on some kind of dream logic. A regiment of multicolored patchwork characters tumbles on stage from another space-time continuum. Surrounded by mysterious, partly disturbing sceneries, these carnies, utopians and adventurists make their way with the unflinching confidence of a modern Munchausen.

Various (born near San Jose but grew up in the divided Berlin) and her partner Gould both address personal experiences of closeness, distance and deracination, but also reference the current refugee situation in Europe. For the first time, the two artists have portrayed people from their personal sphere of family and friends. The results are poetic, sometimes intimate works that blur the line between reality and fiction.

The exhibition also includes a selection of canvas pieces, reminding us of popular jumpingjack cut-outs covered with individual body parts and objects. This juxtaposition of loose elements and final collages provides an insight into the duos‘ intuitive working process.

Suitably, the title "Permanently Improvised" is a tribute to the DIY culture, and a reference to everlasting workarounds, precarious existences and a fundamental attitude towards life.

The exhibition is rounded off by the performance video "Zu Gast Arbeit" ("Guest Work", Istanbul 2012) as well as the hot-off-the-press limited screen-print edition "Sabotage" (2016).

About the artists:
Berlin based artist duo Various & Gould have worked in close collaboration since 2005. The artists often deal with socially prominent themes such as work, migration, gender, death,religion or the financial crisis in a playful, intuitive manner. Vivid colors combined with typography and encrypted messages are the characteristics of their work. 

Various & Gould are known for constantly reinventing themselves. Their creation is based on the simple but striking formula: 1+1=3. Interests such as the love for paper, the enthusiasm for accidental beauty in everyday life and especially the artistic work in public spaces form the basis for their teamwork. Screen-prints and collages are their great passion.

Various & Gould's work has been part of numerous solo and group exhibitions in Germany, France, Switzerland, Hungary, Great Britain, Austria, Turkey and the United States.

Exhibition Dates: April 1–June 18, 2016
VIEW AVAILABLE WORKS ONLINE