About one hundred ceramic objects are arranged on an almost four-metre-long table covered with a silk cloth. Together, the objects form a fragmented body that, at first glance, resembles an illustration from a reference book on human anatomy, with carefully positioned ribs and visceral organs – lungs, heart, kidneys, intestines. However, the body in Klara Lilja’s graduation piece Resurrection is a far cry from the human body as we know it. It has been taken apart and put back together in a new form incorporating elements that are both magical and macabre. For example, the body has three heads, an octopus arm as a leg and six hands and feet.
Alchemist transformation
Klara Lilja is fascinated by the esoteric science of alchemy and the search for a chemical process to transmute base metals into gold and concoct an elixir for eternal life. The body on the table is surrounded by a large number of small bowls, jars, mortars and bottles. Perhaps the content of these receptacles can transform the body and bring it to life? In Resurrection, alchemist transformation is also the transmutation of one material into another. Each ceramic object is created using a different technique, glaze and firing and together, they tell the story of the transformation of clay from soft, malleable form to hard, fired ceramic.
Horsens Art Museum
The main purpose of Horsens Art Museum is to collect contemporary experimental art with particular emphasis on works of art by the very young generation. This has resulted in large and significant collections of works by some of Denmark’s most prominent artists. Klara Lilja’s Resurrection was created as her graduation piece at Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and is the first piece by the artist in the museum’s collection.
About Klara Lilja
Klara Lilja (b. 1989) lives and works in Copenhagen. She graduated from the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in 2021 and has participated in several large group exhibitions, including at Gl. Holtegaard and Arken. She works in clay and often incorporates references to elements from occult realm, myths, biology and manga.
