This is the workblog for the exhibitions called C’est Bon Panorama by the artist collective C’est Bon Kultur (CBK).
Since 2001 CBK arrange exhibitions every year with art connected to the comics medium. In the past we have made solo exhibitions with artists like Anke Feuchtenberger and Martin Tom Dieck, and group exhibitions with many artists that have also contributed to the international comics art magazine C’est Bon Anthology.
With C’est Bon Panorama we focus on the very mechanisms of storytelling and visual arts. Why do certain stories affect us more than others, and what makes a story survive the passage of time?
The original artwork created for these exhibitions range from ink drawings to silk screen prints to photo collages. In a panoramic format, and with a shared color palette, we make our personal interpretations of a story. We might analyze the symbols of the story, or work with private memories connected with it. Every artist has his/her own unique vision, and these are what we present to you through the framework of a story you too have a connection with.
These are the C’est Bon Panorama exhibitions, and the stories that we have worked with:
C’EST BON PANORAMA III: SUPER MARIO
Super Mario is the pixelated hero with a big mustache who eats mushrooms, travels through pipes and throws tortoise shells. Mario started his carreer as a supporting character in the Donkey Kong game, but he soon got the leading role. To this date, he has showed up in more than 200 video games. Many of us still remember the early Mario, when Nintendo was a squarish box, and you had to blow in the game cartridges to make them work.
The artists of C’est Bon Kultur present the third Panorama exhibition in as many years. It started with the oral storytelling tradition through the fairy tale of Little Red Riding Hood, moved on to the modern novel with Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and now we have reached the dawn of the digital age through Nintendo’s golden boy, Super Mario.
The participating artists are Sofia Falkenhem, Martin Flink, Allan Haverholm, Cin Iwarsson, Sarah Kläpp, Jamil Mani and Elisabeth Nielsen. Each artist makes his/her unique interpretation of Super Mario and his world, by breaking down and building up, pixel by pixel.
Place: Gallery Spegeln, Malmö
Dates: November 12, 2010 – January 16, 2011
Opening/Vernissage: November 12, at 17 hrs, during the comics festival AltCom
C’EST BON PANORAMA II: FRANKENSTEIN
In 1815, when Mary Shelley wrote her novel about the monster created by Frankenstein, she could hardly know what kind of monster she created. A story about a nameless creature that has been reinterpreted and retold in countless films and comics. In C’est Bon Panorama II: Frankenstein, seven artists contributed with seven unique perspectives, and aive new life to the gruesome icon of popular culture.
The participating artists were Oskar Aspman, Johan Jergner-Ekervik, Mattias Elftorp, Sofia Falkenhem, Allan Haverholm, Susanne Johansson and Jamil Mani.
The exhibition was held at Gallery Spegeln, Malmö, Sweden, from October 30 to November 13, 2009.
C’EST BON PANORAMA I: LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD
Three artists interpreted in different techniques the classic fairytale of Little Red Riding Hood. This fairytale has its origins in the oral storytelling tradition, and was subsequently written down by writers in many cultures. Most famously, The Brothers Grimm, but also the frenchman Perrault wrote their own memorable versions of the story. Undoubtedly, Little Red Riding Hood has been told and retold countless of times.
The exhibition featured art by C’est Bon Kultur crew members. One of the core ideas behind the exhibition was to use a story that is well-known, and to see what happens when the audience’s memories and relations to the story, meets the visions of the three artists. The work had a wide range of different artistic expressions, from foto collage to expressive ink drawing to graphic prints.
Participating artists were Mattias Elftorp, Susanne Johansson and Jamil Mani.
The exhibition was held at Gallery Panora, Malmö, Sweden, from November 29 to December 20, 2008.
