TRAUMA Presents: EARTHEATER in collaboration with ANNA UDDENBERG
Wednesday, June 12th, 2024
Doors open at 9pm
Kaserne Basel, Klybeckstrasse 1b, 4058 Basel, Switzerland

On June 12th 2024 from 9pm, during Art Basel, TRAUMA unveils a seminal performance piece, showcasing an ongoing, interdisciplinary creative exchange between artist Anna Uddenberg and musician Eartheater at Kaserne Basel.

This collaborative showcase departed from an interweaving of the provocative visual themes of Uddenberg’s sculpture “Climber (Pierced Rosebud)” — a poignant commentary on hyper-sexualization in consumer culture and the increasingly blurred lines between authenticity and fabrication — with the avant-garde musical expressions of Eartheater.

A manifestation of Uddenberg’s canonical artistic practice, stage elements combine features of various sculptural works, with Eartheater, for the very first time, assuming the role of an animated iteration — becoming the embodiment of the work’s central discourse.

Eartheater embodies the character “Climber” amidst Uddenberg’s captivating sculpture, “Climber (Pierced Rosebud).” Draped in a custom-crafted garment by fashion stylist Billy Lobos, Eartheater’s performance seamlessly integrates with the visual story, erasing distinctions between sound and form. This blending of auditory and visual elements offers an immersive voyage through creative expression, showcasing the dynamic interplay between contemporary art and music.

Credits:
Creative Direction & Production: Leonardo Liccini, Madalina Stanescu, Kyle Van Horn, Troels Primdahl
Consultant: Sally von Rosen
Costume Concept & Styling: Billy Lobos
Costume Design: Don Aretino + Billy Lobos
Artwork Promo: Eddie Mandell
Venue: Kaserne Basel, Marcel Bisevic
Press & Communications: Reference Studios

About Eartheater:
New York-based artist Eartheater is a multi-talented musician, composer, and vocalist known for her distinctive three-octave vocal range and experimental digital production. Blending classical composition with avant-garde sensibilities, her work navigates the realms of sonic abstraction and emotional resonance with captivating clarity. Live performance is fundamental to Eartheater’s artistic vision, employing tension and improvisation to render her intricate compositions into indelible corporeal manifestations. Her album “Phoenix: Flames Are Dew Upon My Skin,” released in fall 2020 via PAN, showcases Eartheater’s mastery of production and features some of her most direct and affecting songs to date. Collaborations with artists such as Show Me The Body, Moor Mother, and Caroline Polachek highlight her versatility and innovation in the music scene.
Inspired by Uddenberg’s sculpture, Eartheater’s recent music video for “Pure Smile Snake Venom” features the same garment designed by Billy Lobos, with the artist assuming the poses of the sculpture while performing the song. Directed by Daniel Sannwald, this collaboration showcases a fusion of contemporary art, fashion, and music, challenging societal norms and perceptions.

About Anna Uddenberg:
Anna Uddenberg’s sculptures and performances examine the inextricable entanglements that algorithms engender between consumerism, identity and performativity. Uddenberg has become known for her sculptures of hyper-sexualised (and hyper-flexible) faceless female dummies adorned in futuristic, utilitarian luxury apparel and flaunting synthetic hair and acrylic nails. Frozen in extreme positions or poses that push “sexy” to the brink of absurdity, these highly instagrammable figures hold up a mirror to contemporary culture’s obsession with self-styling and our being locked in a mode of “watch[ing] ourselves as someone else,” as Alice Jardine would have it.