Barbara Visser on Escapism, Context, and Unstable Art Forms

In a 2015 interview with Tanja Baudoin for Afterall, artist Barbara Visser discusses her context-driven practice spanning photography, design, performance, collage, and architecture. Visser, known for works like 'The World Belongs to Early Risers' (2002) that blur reality and fabrication, describes her ongoing attempt to escape the art world while remaining within it. She cites Cindy Sherman as an early inspiration, particularly Sherman's takeover of a German newspaper issue on the fall of the Berlin Wall. Visser explains that her works evolve over time—for example, 'Detitled' (2000) shifted from a magazine feature to billboards in São Paulo to free postcards. She argues that changing a work's appearance can preserve its essence, rejecting static forms as 'embalming.' For her exhibition 'Manual/2: The Patient Artist' at Kunstraum, London (until 13 June 2015), Visser revisited four early works from the 1990s dealing with artist identity and escapism, including 'Lecture on Lecture with Actress' (2004) where she sent an actress to give a lecture in her place. She is also researching psychological aid since the 1950s and attempting to obtain her file from the Psychoanalytic Institute to use descriptions as fiction. Visser sees film as an ideal medium for its ephemerality and ability to encompass older works while reflecting on representation.