Nicholas Hertz
Dissolving in Clear Skies
Taryn Walker’s reflections on this work can be found here
Live studio visit with Nicholas and fellow SNAP emerging artist in residence Taryn Walker was held on March 29, 2022. Watch the recorded conversation below.
My practice explores the oscillation between the objectification of the queer body and the anthropomorphizing of environments. In this oscillation, the viewer is brought into the liminal space between the seen and unseen: between the body and space. Through manipulating a fragmented gaze, the work is driven by a misuse of space and image; deconstructing and reconstructing the viewer's understanding of the body and its relationship to the spaces it occupies.
By documenting my lived experiences I have created an archive of material that follows a personal narrative. Like an archive, I am able to organize, group, and delink these experiences to present something entirely new. It is in this newness that the work has naturally shifted into a virtual landscape wherein I am able to explore a queer body mediated by technology—a new landscape where I can define my body and the spaces it occupies.
This shared series of images explores the relationship between the body and the environment. In each work, there is a conversation and negotiation which takes place between body and space. Furthermore, the act of active documentation breaks the third wall. This is evidenced through digital interference - a mouse pointer, tracking guides, text bubbles, or even my reflection in the computer screen. Through these elements, the viewer sees process and product as one. The act of recontextualizing and reinterpreting the source materials gives way to something altogether new.
About the Artist
Instagram: @nicholashertz
Nicholas Hertz (he/they) is a queer white-settler artist based Amiskwacîwâskahikan (Edmonton). Their work and research takes an interdisciplinary approach to exploring the liminal space between shame and desire, where he connects to the objectification of the queer body and the anthropomorphizing of environments.
In 2019, they received their Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Alberta, where they were awarded the Livia Stoyke Foundation BFA Best of Show Award. Since then, their work has been featured in many exhibitions both locally and internationally.
Currently they are an Emerging Artist in Residence at SNAP, with a solo exhibition slated for May 2022. They are also a participant in the Love Lab residency at the Art Gallery of Mississauga, sponsored by Panasonic. They have previously served on the Board of Directors at SNAP, invigilated with the Art Gallery of Alberta, and taught programs with the Art Gallery of St. Albert.