Camille Rojas: Sothebae's

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Camille Rojas’ Sothebae’s takes the theatrics of an art auction as its theme. The work examines Rojas’ discomfort with the role of the auction as performance, and its use of handlers as props — people positioned next to artworks, often “for scale.” Through a series of ten photographs, Sothebae’s recreates the scenes of an auction, using parody to place emphasis on the awkward and absurd nature of these conventions. Rojas’ subjects do not pose next to artworks, rather only empty ornamental frames, their limbs contorted to be entwined within it. The habitual, static poses of the handler are taken to an inordinate and humorous level to assess the imbalance of power, labour relations, and class housed in the performance of the art auction.