Berlin | ArtRegion: Charlottenburg

Borch Gallery

Huma Bhabha

7. September – 2. November 2019

Huma Bhabha is best known for assembling tactile materials like clay, wire, cork and scraps of construction into dark, dense sculptures full of cultural references. Ever shifting between figuration and abstraction, they deal with what the artist describes as «eternal concerns» found across all cultures: war, colonialism, and memories of home. In her works on paper, Bhabha creates atmospheric portraits, often blending animal and human features.

For Leochicospeedy, Huma Bhabha created a series of expressionistic portraits of deities or a race of gods executed in photogravure and etching. Although the works convey an almost nightmarish atmosphere, the underlying photos taken by the artist are of three playing dogs: Leo, Chico, and Speedy. The dogs belonged to the artist’s brother, who passed away in 2015, and to the artist, they represent his legacy. Huma Bhabha uses the image of the dog similarly to the way Joseph Beuys uses the coyote and the hare: as a mediator between humans and nature.

The title of her series of etchings The Unsubs links to the TV-show Criminal Minds. Here, the artist depicts unknown subjects or entities from an imaginary world, consciously avoiding characterization: They are ambiguous; whether they are heroes or villains is open to the viewer’s interpretation.

Image caption: Huma Bhabha, Leochiccospeedy, 2016, detail, photogravure, spit bite aquatint, 88,5 x 80 cm, series of 10