Baldessari @ Portikus; Purity, temptation and the Garden of Eden

Congratulations to the legendary John Baldessari, who is opening at Portikus, Frankfurt am Main, Germany on the ninth. Interesting description of the shows thesis, though we are fairly sure there is a translation issue:

"In more than one way, the exhibition points toward the incompatibility of purity and temptation, as described also in the Christian myth of the Garden of Eden. Baldessari employs the universal symbolism inherent in his motifs as a means of visual invention…" (emphasis ours)

I’m just guessing, but I think John might say, rather than illustrating the "incompatibility" of purity and temptation, his work often deals with the idea of their mutual dependency; there can be no purity without temptation and vice versa.

JOHN BALDESSARI Eden: Adam and Eve (with Ear and Nose) Plus Serpent. Opening: February 9, 2007, 8 pm Exhibition: February 10, 2007—March 18, 2007 Conversation with the press: February 9, 2007, 11 am John Baldessari speaks at the Städelschule: February 10, 2007, 3 pm PORTIKUS Alte Brücke 2 Maininsel 60594 Frankfurt am Main, Germany Telephone 49 69 962 44 54-0 Fax 49 69 962 44 54-24 http://www.portikus