
Exhibition by artists Letícia Ramos (Brazil) and Zen Marie (South Africa) at Museum Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa.
Curated by Pivô in collaboration with Nothing Gets Organised, it is organized by the collaborative project OtherNetwork, created by Cookies in partnership with ifa – Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen.
In the dim, candlelit stillness of a blackout, the profound kinship between the power grid’s faltering pulse and the human body’s elusive balance becomes self-evident. Just as the ceaseless demands on an overstretched electrical system lead to an inevitable collapse, so do the relentless pressures of modern life erode our inner reserves, culminating in the all-too-familiar state of burnout. Like camera lenses, our eyes gradually adapt to the darkness, searching for light in the shadows, mirroring the resilience and adaptability required to navigate these moments of forced stillness. In each case, the fragility of overtaxed systems becomes apparent, and the flickering of lights and the dulling of spirits both signal a desperate need for rest, recovery, and a re-evaluation of our insatiable drive for productivity. In these moments of forced stillness, we may find an opportunity to reflect on the delicate equilibrium required to sustain our worn-out cities and bodies.
This resonance forms the thematic backbone of Dim Corners, an evocative exhibition in Johannesburg featuring new works by Brazilian artist Leticia Ramos and South African artist Zen Marie. The exhibition takes into account the city’s frequent energy shortages, weaving a narrative that intertwines the immediate physical impact with the broader, insidious issues of climate change and environmental racism. Ramos and Marie, through their distinct artistic lenses, lay bare the socio-economic and environmental crises underpinning these blackouts, urging viewers to confront the realities often left in the shadows.
With her meticulous photographic techniques and hauntingly detailed video installations, Leticia Ramos captures an undetected megalopolis with eerie, ephemeral quality under blackout conditions. Her work is a visual symphony of darkness and light, where the intermittent glow of emergency lights and candles becomes a metaphor for resilience amidst adversity. Ramos’ work documents these moments and provides a stark reminder of the inequities exacerbated by environmental degradation and climate change.
Zen Marie has created a multi-channel video work, filmed over six months while driving on the De Villiers Graaf elevated highway, commonly known as the double-decker highway, in Johannesburg, South Africa. His camera works in an attempt to understand this structure—its layers, concrete beams, and apertures—and serves as a basis for speculations on the city it bypasses. This work reflects on the highway’s design as a lingering fantasy of modernism, one that has evolved into a present marked by fleeting capital, hijacked buildings, and failing infrastructure.
Dim Corners is a pretext for a dialogue between two artists who didn’t know each other beforehand and who share similar concerns, while speaking from different angles of the Global South. Just as a city’s lights can dim without warning, so too can the vitality of its residents; both serve as reminders that when the systems in place fail, the consequences ripple far beyond mere inconvenience.
Letícia Ramos explores the production limits of the experimental analogue image through works in photography and film. Her practice points to the aesthetic intersections between science and fiction transiting between natural and imaginary landscapes.
She has won photography awards such as Besphoto / NovoBanco, Brasil Fotografía Award, Bolsa Zuum / Moreira Salles Institute, Marc Ferrez Award and the Beca de Creación de la Fundación Botin. Her works were exhibited in spaces such as Tate Modern, Pivô Art Center, Moreira Salles Institute, Itaú Cultural, Fundación Iberê Camargo, Berardo Collection Museum, CAPC Musée d’art contemporain (Bordeaux). Her works are in collections such as Fundacion Botin, Noveo Musee de Monaco, Museum of Modern Art SP – RJ and Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo.
Participated in the exhibition Between Our Knots: Ten Years of ZUM/IMS Grant in 2023