Hayley Aviva Silverman, Health, 2016
, Enamel bedpan, lamp, tiles, miniature tin and oven, Piano Baby figure, LED light, polyurethane, foodstuffs (Ramen noodles, oyster, duck, sugar snap peas, mushrooms), 35 × 40 × 30 cm
Courtesy of the artist and DREI Gallery, Cologne
Hayley Aviva Silverman uses a range of media in her sculpture, painting, video and performance work and her artistic approach reflects on handling memories and preserving thoughts and materials in the past and present.Healthis derived from one of the artist’s series in which figures of people and animals and various objects are presented alongside deceptively realistic looking plastic foods in small bowls cast in synthetic resin. With their virtuous titles, the rich ingredients of these ‘soup sculptures’ make a complex reference to socially critical issues such as the material and non-material values of our society.
— Magdalena Koschat
Hayley Aviva Silverman, Bitter Water Playbook, 2016
, Digital printing on brushed steel, 166 x 92 cm
Courtesy of the artist and DREI Gallery, Cologne
Girl power could be the motto of the work by Hayley Aviva Silverman but she doesn’t make it that easy for the observer. The title of the ‘Bitter Water’ panel refers to the alleged ordeals detailed in the Hebrew Scriptures according to which women accused by their husbands of adultery were forced to drink poison. In the (unlikely) event that they survived, they were deemed to be innocent. She counters this with strong women, Amazons, who are anything but erotic and thereby creates an impression of the self-image which all women should have.
— Frank Falderbaum