"I HIDE IN SNAKES"
STEFAN DANIELSSON
JUNE 16 - JULY 9, 2006
OPENING RECEPTION WITH THE ARTIST: FRIDAY, JUNE 16, 6-9 pm
This is the first solo exhibition by Swedish artist Stefan Danielsson
Baron Samedi and Papa Gede are different names for the chief death spirit (Gede Loa) in the Haitian vodou pantheon. He's the head of the decomposing Gede family which consists of countless spirits all connected to death in one way or another.
Baron Samedi is usually portrayed as a rotting corpse, dressed in a black costume, top hat and sunglasses because he hates the light. The cross is his main symbol but it has nothing to do with the Christian cross. Instead it symbolizes the crossroads which are an important magical site in vodou, as it is in many other magical systems. The vertical line of the cross stands for the spiritual side and the horizontal for the material.
In Stefan Danielsson's first solo exhibition he shows collages which draw strongly from such cultural motifs from Africa and Haiti. His works seem to have aged a hundred years since this young artist started making them. His care for the beauty in a picture stands in contrast against the often uncomfortable subject matter, and his meticulous attention to details can be seen in his choice of materials; antique papers, real snake scales, dried grass etc.
Galleri Loyal
Torsgatan 59
113 37 Stockholm
+46 8 32 44 91
