Das Erdbeermädchen (2014)
The work, produced in 2014, references the painting "The Strawberry Girl" by Joshua Reynolds. It consists of two parts. Both parts treat the almost bizarre scene in Reynolds' painting, which shows a little girl bent over like an old woman, coming out of a dark forest and carrying something in her apron the viewer cannot see. This makes the painting incredibly intriguing.
The first part of the work is a video in collaboration with Conrad Veit where Aylin Leclaire plays the role of the Strawberry Girl. The figure holds a strawberry in her hand and then a thought appears in her mind. This thought distracts her so much that she drops the strawberry. She opens her apron, in which she is carrying something and looks at what is inside, which is unclear to the viewer. She is happy and suddenly her joy becomes a deep pain. She closes her apron. The last image shows the girl in the same pose as in Reynolds' painting.
The second part of the work is an old Mini, which does not look unusual at first glance. However, this car attracts attention from many people even in day to day life. The car windows are painted black from the inside. There are two small holes scratched into the windows where the viewer can see into the car. Through these peepholes, one can see the strawberry girl lying on a dark, cavernous floor, which is completely covered with strawberries. It is unclear whether the girl is sleeping or even alive. The passive viewer leaves the installation feeling that they have encountered something intimate, but with the knowledge of an unrevealed secret.
Both parts of this work suggest and describes a secret that lies within the Joshua Reynolds painting. The figure inside the Mini is a plastic cast of Aylin Leclaire's body, and also the same person in the strawberry girl video.