Baubo Dance
porcelain, textile, metal, leather, dimensions variable 2017 - 2020

In Greek mythology, Baubo is an obscure goddess who is depicted as an old crone, and yet is sexually liberated and promiscuous. Her flouting of social restraint and normative beauty has been compared to carnivalesque folk celebrations by modern commentators, including Mikhail Bakhtin. Baubo was traditionally depicted with an exaggerated vulva; here, Estonian artist Kris Lemsalu–known for her intricately costumed sculptured and performance works–updates Baubo's iconography with an androgynous twist for the twenty-first century. The figures' dancing further references the pagan, pre-Christian traditions of the artist's homeland, such as leaping over an open fire at midsummer.

Text from exhibition 'Interior Infinite', Polygon gallery, 2021