“I’m not one of these guys who’s constantly in a relationship, not at all”

The show’s title is a play on the the french fashion label The Kooples, whose ads depict real-life couples dressed in a matching manner, wearing chambray shirts, leather jacket and wool blazers. At the same time it’s a take on the couple as a social structure, of “two individuals of the same sort considered together”. As an intimate - or loving - relationship, the couple has been the cradle of a traditional family and our arguably most thought and written about structure.

Mainstream media has produced dozens of famous examples, here we’re looking at a small selection: Arranged like a christian Altar there is the sculpture of two people laying on a piece of cloth in the middle of the space. The interweaved pose is taken from an image of Johnny Depp and Kate Moss, him protecting and covering her naked body with his own. Laying in a lake of what could be blood or pink color of unclear origin, we could read the scene as part of a sacrifice ritual, them giving they love and body for the sake of the public.

Spread along the room, there are images of other couples too; taken from Just Jared, a multimedia platform which provides pop culture trends, “extensive celebrity photo galleries and breaking entertainment news” they show the examples of the moment - Justin Bieber in multiple stages of his relationship with Selena Gomez as well as Robert Pattinson, the love vampire that has taken Kristen Stewarts heart before going for musician FKA Twigs. With these images pasted on wall, floor and ceiling, the space becomes a hybrid between lifestyle blog and the interior of a fashion boutique. In this environment of a small commercial store, the images serve as advertisement or “inspiration”, selling you a lifestyle which allegedly can be bought with the products on offer. At the same time we are reminded of the stained glass windows in christian churches too, which depict the Saints of their specific time.

It’s this icon-like status, which makes look, scale or evaluate our own relationship against these famous examples produced by the entertainment industry. This more personal or introspective side of the show finds it’s continuation in the “Brangelina” paintings. Each taking a Prada handbag as a basis the works get turned into a Rauschenbergian assemblage, using pieces of clothing, paint and accessories from the artists personal collection. Hung to the wall these pieces become like trophies, part archive of the artists past love’s and part of his imagined one’s, the works speak of the time shared between two people and the resulting mergence into this one single entity or persona, the couple as a sum which goes beyond it’s part. 

Contribution by Domenico de Chirico.

Yves Scherer - Couples
Studiolo, December 11 - February 14
www.studioloproject.com