Martine Syms is presenting her first solo show with Sprüth Magers gallery in Los Angeles, titled Loser Back Home. The exhibition features her latest works, some of which are inspired by the concept of "dysplacement", a term coined by historian Barbara Fields to describe the loss of connection to one's home or familiar place due to violence or oppression.

Martine Syms is an artist based in Los Angeles who works across various media. Her work explores themes of identity, race, gender, history and technology, often with a humorous and critical perspective. One of the new video works in the exhibition is This Is A Studio (2023), which shows surveillance footage of a police visit to Syms' studio at night. The video is displayed inside a box covered with images from the artist's daily life, creating a contrast between the private and the public, the personal and the institutional, and the creative and the oppressive.

Another new video work is i am wise enough to die things go (2023), which is based on the form and structure of an animated short by Chuck Jones. Syms translates the animation into live action, using visual effects and an original score to create a sense of disorientation and psychosis. The video is shown on two split screens, one featuring an unnamed protagonist who recites a monologue, and the other showing various scenes related to her words.

Syms also presents a series of textile paintings made of stitched-together garments, some of which are branded with high fashion labels or printed with slogans. The paintings are stretched over metal frames with holes that reveal the wall behind them, suggesting a fragmentation or perforation of identity. The clothes also reference the historical links between sewing, film editing and computer programming, all fields that were initially considered women's work.

Through her diverse and innovative works, Syms challenges the viewers to question their assumptions and expectations about themselves and others, and to reflect on how identity is shaped by culture, media and power. Loser Back Home is open until August 26, 2023.

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