Jen Mann: Girls on Film

Jen Mann: Girls on Film is a multilayered and thought-provoking exploration of      identity that invites us to reflect on our own perceptions of the self in our media driven contemporary society. Mann uses herself as the main character in her work while exploring themes of reality, commentary on media and its effects on identity and materialism. Within each layer of existential meaning, she engages with themes ranging from illusions, consumerism and satire. 

Staging herself as the lead singer in a fictional girl band called “Other Sister,” the artist seamlessly blends the personal and the universal, prompting us to look inward for meaning and identity. This added layer of irony underscores a broader message about the complexities of the human experience. As a means of critiquing contemporary consumer culture and media distortion, Mann built a whole universe to interrogate who we are and how we relate to others. She draws attention to the ways in which we construct and manipulate our identities in an age dominated by social media, and challenges visitors to question their own assumptions and biases as they consider how the corporate gaze and consumerism shape their perceptions of the world. 

A multidisciplinary artist whose practice involves painting, sculpture, photography, video as well as performance, Mann’s practice draws on a range of intellectual traditions and frameworks, such as psychoanalysis, cultural studies, and feminist theory. Her works engage with both philosophical and existential questions, including those related to subjectivity, intersubjectivity, and the nature of reality itself. As Mann interprets the usage of colors in her paintings as otherworldly distortions, playing with emotion, the incorporation of large and brightly lit panels sets the tone for the viewer as they enter the show and immerse themselves deeper in Mann’s make-believe universe. 

Jen Mann (born in 1987) is a Canadian artist best known for her large-scale hyper-realistic portraiture. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in printmaking from OCAD University (Toronto, Canada). As a conceptual artist, she mainly focuses on the idea of self in a post-Internet world. Influenced by social media and popular culture, Mann riffs on what it means to be, and how we understand ourselves through the lens of the corporate gaze. Working in many mediums, including painting, film, sculpture, and sound, she is mostly known for her large-scale portraits. The elaborate meta-worlds-within-worlds she creates take on a life of their own, and question our identities, reality, and life as they are seen from the perspective of American corporate media. Her work has been shown in Canada and internationally, most notably at Neubacher Shor Contemporary (Toronto, Canada), Cordesa Fine Art (Los Angeles, United States) and Arsham Fieg Gallery (New York, United States). 

 The tickets for the exhibition also includes access to the exhibition entitled Chimeria.