7 pairs of Asics sneakers, silicone, pigments
Dimensions variable
Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein, Vaduz
Seven pairs of Asics sneakers are lined up in a row on the floor, arranged in pairs as if seven people were on their marks. With their tiger-stripe sneakers, the Asics slogan is "We're running to keep you running". Awesome Power (Red and Blue) is the title of Pamela Rosenkranz's work from 2014. Rosenkranz uses her works to probe lifestyle, fitness and wellness culture, investigating philosophical, scientific, historical and sociological phenomena as well as pop culture.
The seven pairs of sneakers from her Anima Sana in Corpore Sano series (A healthy soul in a healthy body), an allusion to the slogan of sports equipment manufacturer Asics, are different sizes and Rosenkranz has filled them with silicone in different flesh tones (German: Inkarnat). Inkarnat, a term used in painting, refers to the representation of the skin in painting. The dyed silicone rubber is available from stores as "Dragon Skin" and is used for prostheses and special effects in films.
In her work, Pamela Rosenkranz explores the human skin as a "boundary surface between the body and its surroundings" in terms of its significance in creating identity. The "hairless, smooth and homogeneous skin", the artist observes, has an attraction that is of central importance for humankind in the history of evolution. But perfect skin is also a seductive demand of our time. Fitness and regeneration serve to achieve a healthy appearance bursting with youth. Awesome Power (Red and Blue) invites us to explore the social trend of intellectual and physical self-enhancement. The reference to the human body in the form of skin colour, "inscribed" as it were into the sneakers in this case in the form of sweat, also constitutes a void and speaks of a profound absence—a symbol of the disappearance of individuality.
Christiane Meyer-Stoll
