No country 1/…8

2009
Photography Series, 8 C-prints, 104 x 85 cm (33.5 x 41 in)
New York, USA

In the photo series “No Country”, the artist presents herself in various entanglements with different men, set against a sandy beach with a tropical wallpaper backdrop. Although the poses are reminiscent of Kamasutra love positions, the melancholic and bored expressions of the participants create a disturbing atmosphere.

Instead of evoking a sensual play between the sexes, the colors and shapes of their draped clothing form combinations that recall various national flags. The protagonists become, quite literally, flag bearers—whose rehearsed poses suggest a pseudo-erotic performance against an artificial paradise. Despite the apparent display of national and sexual diversity, there’s a lack of genuine motivation, turning the series into a satirical parade of strangely empty body forms that convey neither nation nor love. In No Country, the dream dissolves into deception, and the romantic, kitschy fantasy of life in the tropics begins to crumble—not least in the visible creases of the palm-covered wallpaper.