Yes, We Tan!, 2015
Installation & Posters
Project supported by the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD). Berlin, Germany
Yes, We Tan!, 2015 / Installation. Wood, LEDs & Neon Paint. Exhibition view, Kunsthalle Hamburger Platz. Berlin, Germany
About the work
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Commissioned work for the the exhibition "Haut und Farbe" (Skin & Color) in collaboration with the German Dermatology Congress. The luminous sign was presented at the entrance of the congress to welcome hundreds of dermatologists by reading in neon red: “Yes, We Tan!”.
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The project arises in response to the continuous warnings from the German Dermatology Association on the risks involved in the usage of artificial tanning. Yes We tan!, is the result of a research process on medical reviews, population-based surveys as well as marketing strategies used to promote artificial tanning. The piece recalls the luminous signs that light up the shops in Berlin while refers to the Spiegel Online article: Why are so many Germans Orange?
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Yes, We Tan!, 2015 / Installation view (Detail): Kunsthalle Hamburger Platz, Berlin
Yes, We Tan!, 2015 / Exhibition view at the German Dermatology Congress / Berlin, Germany
Why are so many Germans orange?, 2015 / Letterpress on news paper. A2. Edition of 300
About the work
300 letterpress posters. Inspired by the article issued on the German magazine "Der Spiegel" on May 3rd of 2006. The posters are shown together with the luminous sign.
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“Shortly after I arrived in Germany in 2014, I found myself intrigued by the large amount of tanning studios all around Berlin. Inevitably came the comparison with my own culture where white skin is highly valued; although there are solariums (in a radically smaller amount) the beauty industry generates its profits in creams to lighten the skin or bleach the hair”. Alejandra Baltazares, 2015
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