Geisha hair, old towels and environmental responsibility: Manhild Kennedy's mystical masks

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Her Instagram account resembles a report from an entographic expedition to another reality. The masks of the mysterious artist under the pseudonym damselfrau are enchanting - they have ethnic motives, and references to the Baroque, and something occult, and they are literally made of rubbish. Who is hiding under the mask?

Damselfrau is actually called Manhild Kennedy. She was born and raised in Trondheim, Norway. Manhild did not receive a specialized art education - but she studied art from the first days of her life, because her parents are artists. Father Manhild is a sculptor who lectures all over Norway, mother is a talented illustrator, and the house was always full of their friends - also artists. There was a lot of controversy around aesthetics, and Manhild's favorite toys were materials that parents and friends worked with. Raised in an atmosphere of creative freedom, Manhild, nevertheless, has long sought her way in life. After graduating from school at the age of nineteen, she did so many things - but nothing seriously, nothing really. The lack of professional art education still causes the "impostor syndrome" in Manhild.

One way or another, one day the girl packed her suitcase and went to London. She dreamed of life in London since childhood, he frightened and attracted her. There she got a job in a vintage clothing store. Old clothes and decor items seemed to appeal to her, awakened some strange sensations. Manhild spent a lot of time on sales, choosing things to replenish the assortment, and at the same time, she began to collect her own collection of meaningless things, scraps, broken jewelry. At some point, she began to make whole compositions from these fragments of the past, adding to them nets for fruits fished out of urns, garlands, artificial flowers … Manhild was always concerned about the environment, and so she could give a second life to what was to be thrown out and forgotten … She didn’t know how to do anything at first. She studied basic sewing and beading techniques on YouTube, looked at the seams and decor of vintage clothing, studied old sewing encyclopedias.

But masks were born a little later, when Manhild and her friends came up with insane outfits for the stormy London parties. They wanted to look unusual, not like others, but at the same time not spend too much effort, time and money on make-up, selection of outfits and the construction of "Babylon" on the head. So the ritual-fantasy masks damselfrau appeared - and got their own life on social networks. In fact, Manhild never considered herself a mask artist - it's just a comfortable format for her, when a pile of rubbish takes on soul, meaning, and functionality.

The creative pseudonym Manhild is a word game, it simultaneously means a married and unmarried woman. She interprets this word, which at first appeared simply as a nickname for using Skype, as "married to herself" (in fact, Manhild is married not only to herself - according to some reports, she has a husband, also a creative person).

Some Manhild masks are obtained immediately, some wait for years to complete - intuitively suitable material is not always found easily and quickly. Manhild sometimes makes custom-made masks - then the process becomes streamlined. But free, spontaneous creativity is dearer to her. She tries to turn off her consciousness as much as possible, not think about anything, rely on her feelings when she creates a new mask. She is always surprised by the result, it is never planned in advance. Making masks is an instinct. Manhild says that he senses certain chemical reactions in the brain, which make it possible to understand whether the work was successful or not.

Almost everything is used, for the artist there are no unsuitable materials - it's all about color, texture, sensations and combinations. Antique silk? Will do. Dirty towel? Wonderful! Manhild Studio is literally packed with boxes - sometimes, by chance, materials give rise to a new idea. Manhild says that she once collected gold confetti from the floor in an entertainment center, and in Paris on Christmas, she "rescued" plastic crystals that came off the garlands in the trees. Friends, knowing about Manhild's hobby, every time try to pamper her with something unusual. There is a 1700 hair ornament, a few strands of geisha hair, and travel trinkets …

The mask is not considered to be created until it is photographed and posted on several social networks - this is how Manhild gives life to his creation and allows him to "independently" wander through the open spaces of the network in reposts. It is not the artist who makes a work of art so, but the viewer - Manhild does not argue with this statement. However, she creates not only masks - on her website and pages on the Internet you can find prints, postcards, collections of jewelry. From an early age she loved to make small jewelry for herself. Now for her it is a good way to relax, switch … and at the same time do not sit idly by, because a break in creative activity has a depressing effect on Manhild. Manhild's favorite materials for creating jewelry are river pearls and brass.

Despite the fact that Manhild is still a young and rather specific artist, not so long ago the National Museum of Decorative Arts of Trondheim held a solo exhibition of her - before that she had not exhibited her work at home. Among the most successful collaborations is work on an interesting project with Queen Mary University and designer Rachel Freyr, which uses technical fabrics and motion sensors with her masks. Manhild masks were used for one of the performances by Incubus.

What's next? Manhild is not thinking - but, perhaps, will be engaged in interior design. She often presents herself as a decorator of premises, and she considers her masks rather as a part of a not yet created whole. She is mesmerized by Versailles - this is how a dream come true in Manhild's view. She doesn't know for sure yet, but just like in the case of London, she feels that something will happen soon. So, see you at Versailles.