as we reported earlier this week, Vermibus #6245 presented his new art work ‘Unmasking Kate’ at Monikerartfair, leading festival in cutting edge contemporary art. besides this regular exhibition, Vermibus took off to Shortditch to install one of his famous pieces of art in public.
which did not go unnoticed: only a couple of hours later, the artwork was gone and with it the glasswindow that protected it. passersby commented that a group of young fellows has been trying to break the glass by kicking it. finally, they decided to break it with a hammer, stealing Vermibus piece.
Berlin based artist Vermibus is known for hijacking advertisement campaigns and placing modified ads back into their original context. using a set of skeleton keys, Vermibus unlocks vitrines protecting glossy fashion posters and dissolves the facial contours with white spirit. this leads to an intriguing, oftentimes even grotesque transformation. once the process is completed, he places the advertisement exactly where they were before.
Vermibus message is simple but effective: the impersonal and sanitized perfect bodies turn into shadows that have much more presence and singularity. the posters and models that were so banal, are not so trivial anymore: people stop, stare and are intrigued. they are not part of the background anymore; they stand out in public space.
in that way, Vermibus addresses a highly discussed topic from an interesting angle: the coexistence of brands and culture & art. he avoids cannibalizing either one of them; instead his creations are oftentimes mutually beneficial and avoid a clash of interests. his aim is to resurface the real aura of the depicted models.
the 25 years old majorca-born artist is supported by Open Walls Gallery Berlin run by Guillaume Trotin and was featured in the very first Showcase Reboot at PLATOON KUNSTHALLE Berlin.
