In this house is a home...

"In this house is a home..." is the first solo exhibition of new paintings, drawings and sculptures by the artist Heino Schmid, curated by Jodi Minnis.
Born and raised in Nassau, Schmid’s work is heavily drawings based but often includes objects from the landscape—poinciana pods, dried coconut husks, palm leaves, scraps of wood and various building materials—to create bold and forceful installations.
Schmid will be presenting a new body of work investigating domesticity. Domesticity or “Home” is an ambiguous concept, leaving most people attempting to define it by choosing either the intangible warmth of a familiar space or the structure that encompasses this familiarity. Through paintings and assemblages, Schmid repeats the structural silhouette of a house, four walls with a roof, as a baseline for his negotiation of domesticity. This is Schmid’s first solo at TERN and shows the ebb and flow of his practice from figurative abstraction to structural deconstruction and sculpture.
In this exhibition, the notion of “Home” revolves around the industrial aspects of homemaking. The recurring motif is a rectangular dwelling place inspired by traditional Bahamian homesteads. Schmid repeats this “place” as opaque and dense geometric shapes occupying space and alluding to time. In other works, the structure exists with transparency, holding space and allowing the viewer to see the inner workings of the home. Additionally, as a new father, Schmid toils with the notions of shelter, provision, and fabrication for the sake of safety.
During an interview, Schmid stated,

"You can’t start with the crossbreeze, you have to have the structure for it then add the crossbreeze."

This line of thinking supports Schmid’s prioritizing of construction in his practice. Foundations must be laid, one block sits on top of another, and the cement needs time to dry. Schmid’s investigation of materiality manifests in small assemblages utilizing reclaimed wood, limestone, and wire, materials historically used by local builders. Conferring with the two-dimensional works are three figures carved from aged and reclaimed wood. The carvings, which range in size from over 6ft tall to 4ft tall, relay the relationship between structure and occupant. Whether it’s the construction or deconstruction of the figure or a structure, his signature gestural and textural application is ever-present, pushing the viewer to consider their relationship with conventional forms. For more information on this exhibition, please contact Jodi Minnis at jodi@terngallery.com. Tern Gallery Mahogany Hill, Western Road Nassau, The Bahamas info@terngallery.com / +1 242 698 6300 ext 450 Website All information as per press release.