Vicious Circle Disco
solo exhibtion
CODA Museum Apeldoorn
curated by Rianne Groen
2023
Mette Sterre creates a surrealistic roller disco in CODA. A swirling place full of danger, with its ups and downs, the merging of people, speed, and music; a world where nothing seems stable and everything is spinning. The title of the exhibition not only refers to this infinite spinning of the world, but also to the malignant undercurrent in a crumbling world.
Sterre is interested in ancient and contemporary myths and sagas and how they live on in people and their stories. The roller disco Multidance in the Matenhal in Apeldoorn is an example. Here many people from Apeldoorn had parties in the 1980s and 1990s. Another point of reference for the exhibition is Xanadu, a cult film in which a poor artist is kissed by a muse who inspires him to open a roller skate disco. Over the centuries muses are often depicted in art as women who merely serve as instruments for men. From a feminist and queer perspective Mette Sterre gives her own interpretation of what a muse could be today.
Another important element in Mette Sterre’s work are the sculptural open wounds that refer to the wounds and scars that roller skating can cause. A wound has many other meanings for Sterre. It serves as a protective layer, as a ‘document’ of stories, but a wound is also a portal to another world. This in-between space is an intriguing place for Sterre.
Named in the top 5 Summer Exhibitons at the Financial Times by Jeroen Bos
"In Museum CODA, in Apeldoorn, artist Mette Sterre has created a surreal roller disco. It's a disturbing trip down memory lane, with references to the film classics Home Alone and Xanadu. The disturbing aspect lies in the theatrical, grotesque monsters that populate the disco. They are humorous yet slightly unsettling. For this reason, Sterre's fantasy world is a delightful place to let yourself be carried away to. — Jeroen Bos"
Sterre is interested in ancient and contemporary myths and sagas and how they live on in people and their stories. The roller disco Multidance in the Matenhal in Apeldoorn is an example. Here many people from Apeldoorn had parties in the 1980s and 1990s. Another point of reference for the exhibition is Xanadu, a cult film in which a poor artist is kissed by a muse who inspires him to open a roller skate disco. Over the centuries muses are often depicted in art as women who merely serve as instruments for men. From a feminist and queer perspective Mette Sterre gives her own interpretation of what a muse could be today.
Another important element in Mette Sterre’s work are the sculptural open wounds that refer to the wounds and scars that roller skating can cause. A wound has many other meanings for Sterre. It serves as a protective layer, as a ‘document’ of stories, but a wound is also a portal to another world. This in-between space is an intriguing place for Sterre.
Named in the top 5 Summer Exhibitons at the Financial Times by Jeroen Bos
"In Museum CODA, in Apeldoorn, artist Mette Sterre has created a surreal roller disco. It's a disturbing trip down memory lane, with references to the film classics Home Alone and Xanadu. The disturbing aspect lies in the theatrical, grotesque monsters that populate the disco. They are humorous yet slightly unsettling. For this reason, Sterre's fantasy world is a delightful place to let yourself be carried away to. — Jeroen Bos"
An Octopus Named If
38CC Delft
curated by Jip Hinten
Mette Sterre, Monira Al Qadiri, Sarah Browne, Paulo Arraiano en Lee Wen
2023
A lot of scientific research has been donn into octopusses. Together with students from the TU Delft of the Advanced Protyping at the TU Delft I asked; how can we explore the world like an octopuys? together i developed a new bodymask researching the qualities of the skin of an octopus. This work and the research in combination with previous developed work formed the basis for the exhibition "an octopus named if". My work then was contextualised with the work of other artists Monira Al Qadiri, Sarah Browne, Paulo Arraiano and Lee Wen, where octopusses play an important role. Concepts such as Metamorfose, camouflage and embodiment are connecting elements.
An octopus named if was a collaboration between 38cc and the Crossing Parralles and TU Delft, that connects scientists and artsist to collaborate on innovative projects. This is connecting to the curatorial focus of 38CC and the philosophy of the "museum van alsof", where 38cc the role of fiction, science and and sociertye researches.
photos by Roosje Verschoor
An octopus named if was a collaboration between 38cc and the Crossing Parralles and TU Delft, that connects scientists and artsist to collaborate on innovative projects. This is connecting to the curatorial focus of 38CC and the philosophy of the "museum van alsof", where 38cc the role of fiction, science and and sociertye researches.
photos by Roosje Verschoor
There's No Flesh
at Galerie im Tracklhaus
Summeracademy Salzburg
curated by Sophie Goltz and Maximilian Lehner
2023
Bodies liquefy when their appearance combines with new technologies contrary to cultural notions. Mette Sterre's (b. 1983, Delft/Netherlands) work constantly reappropriates and appreciates bodies in techno-social contexts. Drawing on ideas of post/transhumanism, queer/feminism and science fiction, the artist approaches bodies more than as just a substantial mass (flesh). Voluminous body suits, 3D-printed figures and the fusion of different materials such as plastic and oil together with the human body show a world where bodies resemble their surroundings and thus point to a future beyond anthropocentrism.
Photos by Rudolf Strobl
Photos by Rudolf Strobl
Miraculous Beings
Kunsthal de Kade, Amersfoort
curated by Judith van Meeuwen and Laura Stolwerk
2023
For centuries, man has been interested in the extraordinary animals that roam the earth. To mark the 75th anniversary of DierenPark Amersfoort, Kunsthal KAdE will presented the exhibition "Miraculous Beings" from June 3 to September 3 2023.
'A living plastic Christmas tree, an AI dragonfly: 'Miraculous Beings' at Kunsthal KAdE shows poignantly how people regard other animals.' ●●●● (NRC)
Zoos, cabinets of curiosities and dioramas
Dioramas: Daniel Dmyszewicz, Jacco Olivier and Mette Sterre
Around the 16th and 17th centuries, animals were actually brought to Europe from other continents. In menageries, princes and wealthy individuals kept exotic species of animals in the gardens of their palaces. Some artists there were given the opportunity to draw from observation. At the end of the 18th century, scientific research on animals revived and the first public zoos emerged in Europe. These zoos, like the menageries, cabinets of curiosities and royal collections, were the result of European man's desire for expansion. The "foreign" came closer and closer. And with it the curiosity for the unknown, the wondrous and the need to know and own animals. In natural history museums, dioramas attempt to show the animal in its own biotope. I was commisioned to create new work for this exhibition, and always wanted to create a diorama. For the exhibition i created a work with animatronics, bodymasks, animations, a gigantic collage backdrop of 4 x 8 meters and paper.
The titel of the work is "The Yestradamus Enigma Complex (Simulating Stimuleer Reactor Fusion Cooking When All becomes (F)one),".In the 17th century, philosopher Descartes compared animal behavior to that of machines. Much like machines, animals were considered a collection of mechanical parts, thus deemed incapable of thought, fundamentally differentiating them from humans. As a consequence of the industrial revolution, the role of animals in our daily lives diminished, solidifying the concept of animals as soulless beings in the 19th century. Simultaneously, technology began to play an increasingly significant role in our lives.Artist Mette Sterre crafted a diorama portraying a futuristic landscape wherein the planet has become uninhabitable for humans, yet providing space for the development of alternative forms of life. Humanity no longer takes center stage but has transformed into a hybrid entity, embodying characteristics of humans, animals, plants, and machines.
Participating artists Kunsthal KAdE
Greta Alfaro (ES) | Annabelle Binnerts (NL) | Mircea Cantor (RO) | Daniel Dmyszewicz (NL) | Sofia Crespo (IT/AR) | Paul van der Eerden (NL) | Philip Emde (DE) | Jordan Herregraven (NL/US) | Tuomas A. Laitinen (FI) | Romy Muijrers (NL) | Katja Novitskova (EE) | Jacco Olivier (NL) | Amalia Pica (AR) | Mette Sterre (NL) | Philip Ullman (SE) | Anne de Vries (NL)
Participating artists Dierenpark Amersfoort
Gijs Assmann (NL) | Tom Claassen (NL) | Sander van Noort (NL) | Sharon Van Overmeiren (BE) | Pip Passchier (NL) | Henk Visch (NL) | Müge Yilmaz (TR)
Photos by Mette Sterre, Peter Cox en Mike Bink
'A living plastic Christmas tree, an AI dragonfly: 'Miraculous Beings' at Kunsthal KAdE shows poignantly how people regard other animals.' ●●●● (NRC)
Zoos, cabinets of curiosities and dioramas
Dioramas: Daniel Dmyszewicz, Jacco Olivier and Mette Sterre
Around the 16th and 17th centuries, animals were actually brought to Europe from other continents. In menageries, princes and wealthy individuals kept exotic species of animals in the gardens of their palaces. Some artists there were given the opportunity to draw from observation. At the end of the 18th century, scientific research on animals revived and the first public zoos emerged in Europe. These zoos, like the menageries, cabinets of curiosities and royal collections, were the result of European man's desire for expansion. The "foreign" came closer and closer. And with it the curiosity for the unknown, the wondrous and the need to know and own animals. In natural history museums, dioramas attempt to show the animal in its own biotope. I was commisioned to create new work for this exhibition, and always wanted to create a diorama. For the exhibition i created a work with animatronics, bodymasks, animations, a gigantic collage backdrop of 4 x 8 meters and paper.
The titel of the work is "The Yestradamus Enigma Complex (Simulating Stimuleer Reactor Fusion Cooking When All becomes (F)one),".In the 17th century, philosopher Descartes compared animal behavior to that of machines. Much like machines, animals were considered a collection of mechanical parts, thus deemed incapable of thought, fundamentally differentiating them from humans. As a consequence of the industrial revolution, the role of animals in our daily lives diminished, solidifying the concept of animals as soulless beings in the 19th century. Simultaneously, technology began to play an increasingly significant role in our lives.Artist Mette Sterre crafted a diorama portraying a futuristic landscape wherein the planet has become uninhabitable for humans, yet providing space for the development of alternative forms of life. Humanity no longer takes center stage but has transformed into a hybrid entity, embodying characteristics of humans, animals, plants, and machines.
Participating artists Kunsthal KAdE
Greta Alfaro (ES) | Annabelle Binnerts (NL) | Mircea Cantor (RO) | Daniel Dmyszewicz (NL) | Sofia Crespo (IT/AR) | Paul van der Eerden (NL) | Philip Emde (DE) | Jordan Herregraven (NL/US) | Tuomas A. Laitinen (FI) | Romy Muijrers (NL) | Katja Novitskova (EE) | Jacco Olivier (NL) | Amalia Pica (AR) | Mette Sterre (NL) | Philip Ullman (SE) | Anne de Vries (NL)
Participating artists Dierenpark Amersfoort
Gijs Assmann (NL) | Tom Claassen (NL) | Sander van Noort (NL) | Sharon Van Overmeiren (BE) | Pip Passchier (NL) | Henk Visch (NL) | Müge Yilmaz (TR)
Photos by Mette Sterre, Peter Cox en Mike Bink
BIG DADA
Arti et Amicitae Amsterdam
curated by Arjen Lancel en Kim Nathalia
2022
As we merge with advanced technologies, the question of what it means to be human becomes more relevant than ever. Is there a limit to being human? And what defines us as human beings? Is it our reasoning, our idea of freedom, the awareness of our mortality, or the fact that we are storytellers? Big DaDa responds to current events, where digital culture and autonomous imagination merge into a new movement of large-scale control and spontaneous chaos. It revolves around the power of both data and DaDa, the defense weapon. Both connect humanity as a malleable, powerful god and as an irrational child longing for spontaneity and believing in an ideal world
participating artist AKMAR, Anouk Kruithof, Mette Sterre, Splitter Splatter, Jeroen van Loon, Anton Shebetko, Valentina Gal, Casper de Jong, Saemundur Thor Helgason, Bram Ellens, Leon de Bruijne, Maaike Fransen.
photographs by Maarten Nauw
participating artist AKMAR, Anouk Kruithof, Mette Sterre, Splitter Splatter, Jeroen van Loon, Anton Shebetko, Valentina Gal, Casper de Jong, Saemundur Thor Helgason, Bram Ellens, Leon de Bruijne, Maaike Fransen.
photographs by Maarten Nauw
Theta Dream (in the end we are all a bunch of moving fluff)
duo-exhbition with Lotte Wierenga
Kers Gallery Amsterdam
2022
MANIFESTA 14 " it matters what worlds world worlds: how to tell stories otherwise”
curated by Catherine Nichols
Grand Hotel, Prishtina, Kosovo
2022
Mette Sterre’s speculative fabulations invariably begin with the body masks she sculpts. Only when these grotesque, unruly creations become a second skin to their wearers do the artist’s personae fully come into being; only then do their stories spill forth.
Seapussy Power Galore – Abcession (If you don’t know, you don’t grow) plunges both the performer and the viewer into a gurgling underwater world that breathes and writhes, ebbs and flows. The central figure in Sterre’s seascape invokes a mermaid.
Since ancient times, such human-animal hybrids have featured in the myths of many cultures. For all their erotic power, they are typically cast as flawed and disabled, as misfits unable to survive on land, and yet never entirely at home in the water either.Sterre counters this narrative by hooking her water woman up with an air supply, such that she might indeed feel at home under the sea. Mermaid meets cyborg – and then?
text by Catherine Nichols
photos by Adthe Mulha for Manifesta 14
press
Berlin Art LInk
" Seapussy Power Galore – Abcession (If you don’t know, you don’t grow)’ (2021) by Dutch artist Mette Sterre, located on the top floor of the Grand Hotel, does something similar. Glossy green globs cover the walls and drip from the ceiling of what might have possibly been the hotel’s penthouse suite. A short curatorial text plastered on the side mentions mermaids, myths, and machines, but these themes play second fiddle to the first impression made by the work. It presents the Grand Hotel as a living, breathing, but sick and suffering entity.
Placed in this unusual location, many artworks, especially those by foreign artists, acquire meanings that their creators may not have originally intended. Would Sterre or Selma Selman, whose short film ‘Mercedes Matrix’ (2019) shows her family smashing a Mercedes Benz, a well-known symbol of luxury in the Balkans, object to these interpretations? Probably not. After all, Manifesta founder Hedwig Fijen has talked at length about the idea of “co-creation”: co-creation between artists and visitors, internationals and locals, and between Manifesta and the city of Prishtina."
Vogue Poland
"The representation of international artists also contributed to the unsettling, somewhat apocalyptic mood of the city. This was the case with the transhumanist sculptures 'Seapussy Power Galore – Abcession' by Dutch artist Mette Sterre, drawing attention to the body and undergoing hybrid transformations."
Stirworld
Prishtina insight
Blokmagazine
New York Times
Hyperallergic
El Pais