‘Peeping Freedom’ is a body of work conceived for the exhibition ‘Pipilotti Rist: Big Heartedness, Be My Neighbor’ for the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, the first West Coast survey of the internationally renowned Swiss media artist. Rist describes the series this way: “Most of the time you look out of a window to the outside, but in ‘Peeping Freedom’ the gaze is directed inwards, spatially as well as metaphorically. One sees internalized worlds, interior and exterior spaces, flooded with color and light, dreamy impressions. There is a saying that our eyes are the windows to our soul. I love this about windows and eyes: they let us look outside while allowing a view inside too. This window work is like a reversed eye to a human brain: it gives out images rather than taking them in. The shutters work like eyelids, which allow you to open or close the eye as one wishes.” Freedom is always a strive for a new future, never a fixed or given condition. It is always peeping through the holes of our presence; we have to open the shutters to let it come through. Only when we open our hearts and let each other in true freedom for everyone will prevail. ”The titles of the works in the series are all in tribute to women’s rights activists, who have opened a window to a better world with their fearless action and commitment.
The Brooklyn Rail | Dec/Jan 2008–09 | In Conversation
