Gaa is pleased to present Salamander, a solo exhibition of new paintings by Dresden-based artist Johanna Seidel. Characterized by her continued interest in the dualistic nature of both lived experiences and perceived realities, these paintings further complement Seidel’s narrative-building practice and augment her ever-evolving canon of characters. Salamander represents Seidel’s inaugural solo exhibition with Gaa and her first in the United States.

At the core of Seidel’s paintings lies a fascination with the inevitability of transformation and change. Each piece presents a message or a scene richly imbued with symbols indicative of metamorphosis. The titular reference to the salamander, a creature whose mythical origin tale proclaims the amphibian’s ability to withstand the detrimental effects of fire and flame, underscores this motif of adaptation or rebirth so integral to Seidel’s work. Similarly to the ever-adaptable salamander, which can safely survive both on the land and in the water, the protagonists in Seidel’s paintings often exist in narratives crafted to highlight contrasting situations, spaces, and experiences. Juxtapositions of light versus dark, safety versus danger, civilization versus wilderness, and the known versus the unknown are made manifest as one begins to decode the recurrent symbols within these works. Seidel maintains a particular interest in presenting these milieu ambiguously, crafting an open-ended scene that necessitates consideration and interpretation. An audacious spider becomes contained within a transparent glass jar after trespassing through the open window in A room inside a room, eagerly awaiting the opportunity to vacate the apparent safety of the domestic space and return to the unruliness of the outdoors. An alternative perspective is offered in Dungeons and Dragons, where a young woman sits at the boudoir in her room, contemplating the excitement offered by the airborne animals hovering outside her window – a veritable princess locked inside her castle, longing for the perilous thrill of exploration and the inevitable rescue at the hands of her valiant knight in shining armor. These pictorial worlds, often infused with an air of irony and playful humor, function harmoniously through their portrayal of relatable moments in time, presented in a universal, visual language. Seidel dexterously depicts her protagonists without any truly identifiable characteristics, seeking to present various archetypal characters to be witnessed, interpreted, and embodied by the viewer. Whether through the shared feeling of anticipation before an exhilarating night out, or in the relaxation and solitude of a warm bath after a long day, Seidel crafts ubiquitous moments in time, steeped in a certain universality and relatable to all.