Candice Breitz: Working Class Hero November 16, 2009

Berlin-based South African artist Candice Breitz has produced a number of video installations that deal with the impact of pop culture on contemporary consciousness -- especially our obsession with celebrity. 'Working Class Hero' (A Portrait of John Lennon), 2006, is the fourth installment in a series that focuses on pop-music icons (previous works address Bob Marley, Michael Jackson and Madonna). For 'Working Class Hero,' Breitz invited a diverse community of Lennon fans to pay tribute to the late musician by performing his first solo album, 'Plastic Ono Band,' from beginning to end. In addition to offering intimate portraits of each participant, the resulting 25-channel video installation forms a survey of fan culture and reflects on the complex threads of identification that often characterize the relationship between celebrities and their public. On view in an adjacent gallery is a second work by Breitz, entitled ;Mother' (2005). For this work, the artist took famous film performances by actresses in the role of a mother and edited them into composite monologues, creating an exploration of Hollywood 's representation of the maternal.