Language Barrier

Alina and Jeff Bliumis, both originally from the former Soviet Union, now live and work in New York, crafting multidisciplinary artworks which grapple with themes of immigration, assimilation and alienation in an increasingly globalised world. Their own past experiences greatly inform their practice: ‘Having grown up in the socialist reality of the former Soviet Union, during Cold War, and then later living for a long period of time in the United States, both of us experienced what it was like to be “the other” from both sides of the spectrum,’ the duo have stated. ‘Since we are now American citizens, we consider ourselves American artists. Yet because of our background, we are constantly comparing social, political and cultural nuances as well as the similarities and differences.’ Executed in 2008, Language Barrier directly engages with issues of communication, adaptation, misinterpretation and social reorganization. Comprising of a life-size mannequin who has been all but obliterated by a precarious pile of colourful cast-foam books, the sculptural work comes from a series by the same name which was realised between 2006 and 2008. By exploring language as a construct, at once fallible and limiting, this project addresses the social and cultural differences that characterize our interconnected world. Such barriers, at times tangible and resistant, at others permeable or unseen, become a poignant metaphor for the complexities that arise from social and cultural diversity.