INNA CYMLICH JANSE: THEY MOVED MY HEART
27 May - 24 June 2023
Opening 27 May 3-6 pm and 28 May 4-6 pm
By Dr. George Michell, architectural historian

INNA CYMLICH JANSE: THEY MOVED MY HEART
Recent paintings on paper and canvas

28 May – 24 June 2023
PREVIEW Saturday 27 May 15:00 – 18:00
OPENING Sunday 28 May 16:00 – 19:00

Both events will feature a talk by Dr. George Michell, architecture historian

The artist will be present

The Suzanne Biederberg Gallery is pleased to invite you to the exhibition
Inna Cymlich Janse: They Moved My Heart.

The title of the exhibition refers to the unexpected consequences of a recent turn in the life of the artist, whose perspective on the world around her changed dramatically after a failed operation that left her immobile from the waist down. The works in this exhibition, our second solo show with the artist, literally reflect a new outlook following Inna’s adjustment to working seated at a table.

Raised in Australia, now based in Brazil, Inna began her artistic voyage as a young woman, travelling extensively with her camera to countries off the beaten track. Later, in New York, she worked at the International Center for Photography from 1981 to 1985 and afterwards played a significant role in the New York art world. After moving to Sao Paulo 20 years ago, she took up painting, creating monumental, powerful abstract works.

The keen powers of observation that Inna first developed during her travels are also evident in this latest body of work. On exhibition, apart from shoes, are domestic items within her immediate orbit, and works honouring the medical doctors who care for her. Inna’s personal loss is clearly a source of great creativity and her beautiful works are – inevitably – tinged with a little nostalgia. But they are not without humour and it is that combination that makes them so profoundly moving.

Of Inna’s recent work, Sao Paulo-based art historian, curator and critic Maria Alice Milliet writes: “Inna is an artist on the move. No longer able to walk in the streets, her shoes entered the art world. Seated, she began to draw and paint on the pages of books and magazines, making their stories her own. These interventions, done impulsively, show through fluid lines and bright colours, a range of shoes (hers) from elegant sandals to Chinese embroidered slippers, from evening pumps to boots and sapatilhas. All this reveals her taste. the places she loved to visit, her freedom to choose between the fashionable and the unusual.”

Biography

Inna Cymlich Janse was born in the Ural Mountains in Russia. She moved to Brussels with her family when she was three years old, and since then has led a nomadic life, living in Melbourne, Amsterdam, New York, London, Santiago de Chile and São Paulo, Brazil. She has participated in many national and international exhibitions.

George Michell is a world authority on South Asian architecture, and amongst the most distinguished architectural scholars produced by the University of Melbourne. Although based principally in London, he has lectured at universities and museums throughout the USA, Europe, India and Australia. For more information, please see this link (PDF): https://about.unimelb.edu.au/__data/assets/file/0020/15761/michell.pdf