English
Deutsch
until 27.01. | #4494ARTatBerlin | ARTCO Galerie Berlin shows from 8. Dezember 2023 the exhibition The Miserable Bastard Show by the artist Benni Kakert.
Benni Kakert (born 1994), a Berlin-based painter, presents his approach to dealing with life’s challenges in “The Miserable Bastard Show” (on view until January 13 at ARTCO Gallery). Through his paintings, he reflects on the daily abysses of human existence that often go unnoticed and depicts how people experience hardships and develop personal strategies to overcome them. Kakert’s works serve as a retrospective processing of his experiences—an attempt to understand and, ideally, come to terms with them.
Kakert’s search for meaning suggests that someone who makes such an effort to comprehend and learn from their experiences cannot truly be bad. A recurring motif in his paintings is Dennis, a figure born out of a therapy session that represents a darker side of Kakert’s personality. Dennis, with his face painted in the ‘corpsepaint’ style inspired by the Black Metal subculture, is not a clown but an embodiment of the darker sides within everyone—whether it’s the woman at the reception desk or the man with the rabbit ears. Kakert pulls away the mask of this character to reveal the true face of inner misery. But the question remains: can this attempt to expose the hidden succeed, or will we continue to feel misunderstood? It is, in any case, an honest, brave, and painful attempt.
In contrast to the large-scale canvases painted with bold acrylic colors, Kakert’s small wooden boxes, measuring 30 x 30 cm, offer seemingly lighter fare. These pieces combine photographs of himself, his dog Freddi, and people he feels connected to, with text, symbols, and colorful sketches. In Kakert’s distinctive style, they dance playfully like small mischievous sprites around the larger canvases, mocking their somberness. A cynical commentary on the inner struggles and the misery in life.
Exhibition period: Friday, 8. December 2023 until Saturday, 27. January 2024
To the Gallery
Image caption: Benni Kakert, Ein weiteres Haus in Flammen, 2023, Acrylic on canvas, 200 x 400 cm, Serien: Paintings, courtesy ARTCO
Exhibition Benni Kakert – ARTCO Galerie Berlin | Zeitgenössische Kunst in Berlin | Contemporary Art | Exhibitions Berlin Galleries | ART at Berlin
