Rebecca Hossack Art Gallery

Maria Clemen was born in Sweden, raised in Denmark, and now lives and works in London. Her work is strongly influenced by her Scandinavian roots with its emphasis on contemporary design. Her multi-layered collage and assemblages charm, disturb and surprise viewers by sugar-coating darker issues with an almost childlike simplicity. How the West Was Won is one of a series of gun pieces which reference money and the financing of war. These works also relate to movie titles, raising issues about the glamorization of weaponry, and our desensitization to war. Through her use of papier mache Maria sculpts guns and decorates them with currency, thereby presenting a typically masculine, aggressive and menacing object, which she beautifies, rendering it more feminine, acceptable and insidiously alluring.