Amanita Verosa

0047 proudly presents Andreas Tellefsen in his first solo exhibition in Germany.

Tellefsen works with drawings and is known for his black and white paperworks, often in large scale. The exhibition title Amanita Verosa is Latin for "Destroying Angel", a mushroom famous for its white beauty and deadly poison – to which there exist no known antidotes.

A similar ambiguity can be found in Tellefsen’s drawings, being humorous and uncanny, sweet and grotesque at the same time. The viewer is left with an uncertainty that turns the attention towards the meticulous details in every drawing. The influence of the cartoon is obvious, so is the inspiration of the pop art naivety. But even stronger is the influence from the culture of the 1950’s, especially the Hollywood picture.

Like stills from a movie, a frozen glimpse with precise and sharp lines is being presented, an aesthetic influenced by the light and shadow known from the genre of Film Noir. Each drawing seems to be part of a larger story that we have to construct ourselves – to solve the crime or mystery.

Tellefsen not only builds up interiors or sets in his drawings, but also in the actual room where they are presented. He uses dark painted walls and lamps with painted lampshades to evoke the atmosphere of the different scenes, tempting the viewer to step into the movie.

Andreas Tellefsen, born 1976, lives and works in Kristiansand, Norway. He graduated from the National Academy of Fine Arts in 2003, and has been presented in several solo and group shows in Norway. He is represented in the collection of the Norwegian Cultural Council and several private collections.