Alessia Britti

Slipping Glimpse (or something DeKooning said)

‘The eye as an organ has an ability to transcend its biological act of seeing, to its ephemeral act of gazing.’ 1

Alessia’ work is informed by the experience of seeing, her work aims to place the gaze of the viewer into sense of self-consciousness. Taking inspiration from the atmospheric voyeurism of the cinema. Evoking a sense that the audience themselves is subject to voyeurism when looking at art. This body of work is informed by a series “advertisement” material created for a 1930s lingerie company that fell into obscurity. “Diana Slip” was a part of greater network of fetishist business ventures including boutiques and bookshops, each devoted to fulfilling desires. The manufacturer of these lingerie pieces Leon Vidal employed photographers Brassai and Roger Schall to photograph the titillating offering. The images created feel far too intimate for realm of advertisement but highlight the awkwardness of intimacy and the absurdity of undergarments as they exist between the realms of being seen and unseen.

1 Bataille, Georges, Susan Sontag, Roland Barthes, and Joachim Neugroschel. 2001. Story Of The Eye. London: Penguin Books.