Sylvie Fleury commissioned video works blends the appeal of legendary Mercedes-Benz automobiles—from Lightning Benz via Gullwing to C 111—with the latest contemporary ideas from the worlds of art and fashion. At the historical Mercedes-Benz models’ authentic locations in Stuttgart—the showrooms, workshops and test track of the Classic Centre in Fellbach near Stuttgart—Fleury has female models in trendy outfits conduct and perform classically ‘male’ activities in a kind of minimalist choreography: Gullwings rise and descend like futuristic angels; the models polish the gleaming curves of classic cars with their hands; cosmetics are crashed by wide racing tyres; engines are revved up; silver baubles are swept through the workshops. The models are actors at times and emotionless spectators at others. The conspicuous feature of all video works is the relinquishment of the eventful ‘story’ in favour of the simplest, stoically repeated actions and gestures. This gives the videos their spacey, surrealistic and somewhat occult character.
With a text by Renate Wiehager.
