Photographs by Corrado Serra.

“Chris Antemann: Forbidden Fruit is an installation of 21 porcelain sculptures resulting from the collaboration between Oregon-based artist Chris Antemann and the renowned MEISSEN Porcelain Manufactory in Germany. Inspired by eighteenth-century porcelain figurines and decorative art, and using the Garden of Eden as her metaphor, Antemann has created a contemporary interpretation of the eighteenth-century banqueting craze, posing scantily clad male and female figures in intimate and playful vignettes of seduction. Antemann’s work makes formal references to classic baroque MEISSEN figurines to convey narratives of domesticity, social etiquette, and taboos while reflecting on contemporary morality in a setting that evokes the decadence of François Boucher and Jean-Antoine Watteau.” — MAD

“Throughout her career, Antemann has manipulated the purely white and technically challenging material of porcelain to create contemporary interpretations of the pursuits of eighteenth-century elites, such as fine dining and escapades in pleasure gardens,” noted Shannon R. Stratton, MAD’S William and Mildred Lasdon Chief Curator. “Her work also references porcelain’s own place as a commodity. The preciousness of the material and the femininity of the modeling and decoration in the sculptures are juxtaposed with unabashed eroticism and luxury to create an unexpected satire of human vice in the past and present.”

Installation view of Chris Antemann: Forbidden Fruit. Front: MEISSEN. Lemon Chandelier, 2013, Porcelain.

Installation view of Chris Antemann: Forbidden Fruit.

Installation view of Chris Antemann: Forbidden Fruit.

Chris Antemann, Lust & Gluttony, 2008. Porcelain. Museum purchase with funds provided by Nanette L. Laitman, 2008.

Chris Antemann: Forbidden Fruit is a traveling exhibition organized by Chris Antemann. The artworks were produced with Antemann by the MEISSEN Porcelain Manufactory in the MEISSEN artCampus. The exhibition was secured for the Museum of Arts and Design by William and Mildred Lasdon Chief Curator Shannon R. Stratton, with the support of Curatorial Assistant and Project Manager Angelik Vizcarrondo-Laboy.