Two photographic portraits of Peter Zadek (D) 15.7.2000 (100 x 67 cm, digital Pigment print FineArt, laminated with 3mm Dibond, satin laminate), as illustration to Holding the Baby. a short story, English/German March 2002, German translation Tanya Ury and Rolf Steiner
Tanya Ury’s short story Holding the Baby was published in German with two portrait
of Peter Zadek No. 1 & No. 2 15.07.2000,
in the Ambivalence catalogue, Women’s Museum Bonn, 2002, ISBN 3 – 928239-66‑X
In several of her works Tanya Ury has adopted the name of Hermè or Herme (her & me):
Hermeneurotic — a collection of works:
- Hermes Insensed 2000 – 2001 (photo series with 15 short stories)
- Building Bridges 2001 (short story)
- Between the Lines or The Three Rs 2001 (short story)
- Holding the Baby 2002 (2 photographs and short story)
- Stick Insect 2003 (short story)
- Getta Life 2003 (short story)
- Night and Day 2003 (short story)
- Hermesignet 2005 (gold ring with inscription)
- Herme 2010 (digitally processed 1950’s fashion cover)
- herlookingovermeshoulder 2011 (digitally processed 1940’s advertisement)
- hermesends 2013 (digitally processed 1940’s fashion cover)
Although largely autobiographical, Tanya Ury’s narrative is told in the 3rd person; she adopts the name of Hermè (her & me), thereby objectifying a personal history and lending it the flavour of the antique. Hermè’s fables are earnest, thought-provoking but sometimes also, playful.
Holding the Baby describes a meeting with the theatre director Peter Zadek, in which Hermè and Zadek, the theatre director reminisce over the past.
“Zadek was in bad humour when I went to meet him backstage afterwards; he hadn’t seen his cast in six months while they were on tour. According to him, some of them were ignoring his directives; they had changed everything, he said. Winkler’s slow and pensive performance had sometimes been so drawn-out that Zadek was sure she had just forgotten her lines; Matthes, had played her part too hysterically. Bemused, I followed the paterfamilias as he strode exasperated, past Angela Winkler and Eva Matthes, the supposed unruly actresses who had played Hamlet and Gertrude respectively. He ignored them both now.”
Extract from Holding the Baby
Tanya Ury
Presentation
2002 Holding the Baby was published in German with two portraits of Peter Zadek No. 1 & No. 2 15.07.2000, in the Ambivalence catalogue, Women’s Museum Bonn, ISBN 3 – 928239-66‑X (D)
2005 (31.1) Solo presentation, Montagspraxis, Dialesung (Monday Practice, slide reading), b_books, Lübbener Strasse, Berlin (D)
2005 (20.4) Solo presentation, slide Reading with menu, Hitler Gegengift (Hitler Antidote – on his birthday) 150 m³ Largus, Ausstellungs- und Projektraum (exhibition and project space) Mozartstr. 9 Cologne (D)
2006 (25.3.) Solo presentation, Travelcookbook, slide reading of short stories with menu, Propeller, Friedrichshain, Berlin (D)
2009 (9.1) Solo power point presentation in the series “Jewish Impressions”, 8 pm Arkadas Theater, Bühne der Kulturen (Stages of Diverse Cultures), 2 portraits of Peter Zadek, exhibition: 7.12.2008 – 28.1.2009, Cologne (D)
www.ksta.de/html/artik…
Publications & Press
2008 (11) Holding the Baby discussed in article on Tanya Ury (in German) by Hartmut Bomhoff, Jüdische Zeitung (monthly), Berlin (D) article as PDF