Liste Art Fair Basel with Flo Kasearu and Edith Karlson

The dialogue between Edith Karlson and Flo Kasearu's works at Liste Art Fair Basel explores social and existential issues surrounding the human condition. Despite their different artistic strategies, both artists share a keen interest in these themes.

The centrepiece of the presentation is Edith Karlson's sculptural chandelier titled Doomsday. This artwork delves into the trauma of motherhood from the mother's perspective, showcasing the total deconstruction of the body. Accompanying the chandelier are four sculptural reliefs made of jesmonite and concrete, which condense the central themes and visual motifs of Karlson's upcoming project for the Estonian Pavilion at the 60th Venice Biennale. For the Venice Biennale, Karlson will inhabit different spaces of an old church with sculptures of sirens, oversized weeping abstract figures engaged in existential "fight" scenes, surrealistic human heads made of clay, a self-playing organ, and several large snakes. The sculptural reliefs at Liste Art Fair Basel offer a glimpse into this dramaturgy, exploring hidden chambers in the subconsciousness of individuals and mankind. They touch upon myths about paradise, brutal fights, hybrids of humans and animals, and the danse macabre in various forms.
Alongside Karlson's works, Flo Kasearu presents artworks that playfully yet also existentially delve into private and societal issues arising from daily life. The central motifs are unique miniature soap replicas of the artist's 113-year-old family house, which also serves as the Flo Kasearu House Museum (FKM). These soap replicas are presented on one hand in a belfast sink with running water, and as shelved on top of each other on a service trolley. Additionally, new drawings from two ongoing series, Excuses and Fears of a House Owner, broaden the conceptualization of "the house" or "the home" as the main site of private human life. These artworks explore anxieties, worries, fears, possibilities, and nightmare scenarios associated with the home.

Overall, the dialogue between Edith Karlson and Flo Kasearu's works at Liste Art Fair Basel offers a thought-provoking exploration of social and existential issues surrounding the human condition, from the trauma of motherhood to anxieties and fears within the home.

EDITH KARLSON (b. 1983, lives and works in Tallinn) is a sculptor and an installation artist, whose intricate yet often large-scale work incorporates a variety of characters, from ceramic dogs to cement dinosaurs and Neanderthals. The main protagonists in her work are people and animals – whereas the animals appear allegorically or symbolically, the human figures often refer to fears arising from social issues and pressures. Karlson’s evocative installations take the audience on an epic journey, through history, moods and myths and often have the capacity to generate total wonder.

FLO KASEARU (b. 1985) lives and works in Tallinn, Estonia, in the Flo Kasearu House Museum. The nature of her works is seasonal and explorative. Each project begins as an open-ended game, where irony as much as aesthetics is equally valued. Through her work, Kasearu has been tackling themes such as private and public spaces, economic depression, patriotism and nationalism, endangered species, domestic violence, fears, control. Kasearu has been the director of Flo Kasearu House Museum since 2013. Flo Kasearu House museum is a sight-specific art project in the home, attic, basement and backyard of the artist. It is situated in a cosy wooden house, very typical for the Tallinn district of Pelgulinn.

Text by Marten Esko.

Photos by Studio Shapiro.