Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen - Life Is too Short!

Kirkhoff is proud to present Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen's first solo exhibition in the gallery. The video installation ”Life Is too Short!” revolves the aspects around identity, fate and existentialism. It discusses how your life depends on the choices you make. The video questions how one’s life could have turned out differently if you had chosen to life elsewhere and with other people.

”Life Is too Short!” consists of three videos, each portraying a Filipino woman in her daily surroundings at work, in her home, and with her family. As a half Filipino, raised in the Filipines in her early childhood, Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen investigates three different lifestyles. Lifestyles that could have been her own, if her family had not moved to Denmark. She humorously imagines herself being one of the three portrayed women and living their lives by literally and subtlely placing herself in their surroundings with their husbands and families. Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen has chosen three different women, considering their profession and cultural background. Karen is an artist. Her life and does not differ extremely from Lilibeth Cuencas own lifestyle in Denmark. In fact, the artistic environment in Manila is quite similar to the existing in Copenhagen. Sara is a designer. She is like Lilibeth Cuenca herself half Filipino and half Danish. One year ago, she chose to move to the Philippines, where she started her own company. Her cultural background is similar to Lilibeth Cuenca’s own background. Rhea is the artist’s cousin. Despite of her close relation to Lilibeth Cuenca, Rhea’s lifestyle is very different. She has six children and was married at the age of 18. She teaches today in a nursery class. Besides Lilibeth Cuenca’s identification with the three different women’s lives, the portraits also exemplify the socio-cultural and economic differences in Manila. The artwork’s lyric and dreaming atmosphere is strengthened by the soundtrack (Ravel and a Danish evergreen) but also challenged by the intervening Filipino rap music and the interviews with the women. The contrast between the European, Danish and Filipino music reflects the artist’s own identity and socio-cultural belongings.

Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen works primarily in the field of new media such as video and computer animation, which she sometimes combines. Although her videos are inspired by documentary she twists the genre with her aesthetic intention e.g split-screen, repetition and lyric montage in relation to the visual and auditory elements. Her interest lies in socio-cultural relations, where she examines identity, gender and socio-cultural issues connected to different communities in the society. The anthropological and sociological perspectives pose the question on how socio-cultural constructions are deeply influenced by different individual circumstances, specific environments and cultural roots. The examination of the locations questions how the self is constituted and how people act within a group either chosen or determined in social situations such as work, education, leisure time “social activities” or the basic structure of the family.

Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen has exhibited widely in institutions and galleries in Europe and Asia (e.g. Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul; Rooseum, Sweden; Vejle Kunstmuseum, Denmark; KIASMA, Helsinki; Malmö Konstmuseum; BIG the Biennial for young European artists, Torino; Shedhalle, Zürich; Århus Kunstmuseum, Denmark; Kunsthalle Vienna; Vestsjællands Kunstmuseum, Denmark; Moderna Museet, Stockholm). This Summer Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen will participate in Lofoten, an International Art Festival in Norway and also at Arken Museum for Moderne Kunst in Denmark. Later this year, she will exhibit in Toronto. Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen is represented in private collections and in Kiasma, Malmö Konstmuseum and Statens Kunstfond.

Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen - Life Is too Short!